Last Tuesday, Pennsylvania voters cast their ballots in important primary elections across the state, including key statewide contests for the Superior Court and Commonwealth Court, both of which play a significant role in business-related legal decisions in the state.

In the Superior Court race, Washington County Judge Brandon Neuman, a former state representative, ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. Judge Neuman has served on the Washington County Court of Common Pleas since 2018.  Clarion County attorney Maria Battista defeated Chester County Judge Ann Marie Wheatcraft for the GOP nomination for Superior Court. Battista and Neuman will face off in the November General Election.

For the Commonwealth Court, Philadelphia Judge Stella Tsai ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. Matthew Wolford, an environmental attorney from Erie County, defeated Joshua Prince, a gun rights lawyer from Berks County, for the Republican nomination and will face Tsai in the General Election.

In addition to the statewide judicial races, voters also chose candidates for various local offices, including judges for local judicial districts, which often directly decide cases involving local businesses and civil matters, as well as mayoral races and other municipal offices.

In Pittsburgh, current Mayor Ed Gainey lost the Democratic primary to Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor, and in Erie’s mayoral race, challenger Daria Devlin defeated two-term incumbent Joe Schember. In Harrisburg, Mayor Wanda Williams won the Democratic nomination and will almost certainly be elected to a second term, as no Republican ran for mayor. Incumbent mayors in Allentown and Bethlehem were successful as well.

In Philadelphia, District Attorney Larry Krasner won the Democratic nomination, beating former judge Pat Dugan. There is no Republican candidate running for this position in November.

Several current state representatives were nominated for new judicial offices including Rep. Louis Schmitt, R-Blair, seeking a position on the Court of Common Pleas in Blair County; Rep. Torren Ecker, R-Adams, running for a seat on the Adams County Court of Common Pleas, Rep. Dan Miller, D-Allegheny, won a Democratic nomination for the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. In other local election news, state Rep. Josh Siegel, D-Lehigh, won his primary race for Lehigh County Executive.

The General Election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025.