News

By KATIE MEYER WHYY Pennsylvania has begun sending out mail ballots for next month’s election, where voters will elect a slew of new judges who will play key roles in shaping policy for at least the next decade on three statewide appellate courts. But while these judges wield considerable power...
By KATIE MEYER, SAM DUNKLAU, and CHRIS POTTER WHYY Yes, there’s another election day just around the corner. It’s May 18. And, in fact, thanks to no-excuse mail ballots, widespread voting is already open. In addition to deciding local races, voters this year will elect a slew of new judges to...
BY VIRGINIA HINRICHS MCMICHAEL On Jan. 13, the judiciary committee of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives voted 13-12 to send to the House floor H.B. 38, a bill that proposes a constitutional amendment to replace statewide elections of appellate court judges with a system of electing appellate...
By DEBORAH GROSS and LAUREN P. MCKENNA WHYY A proposed amendment to Pennsylvania’s Constitution currently making its way through the General Assembly is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Supporters of House Bill 38 say it is intended to give individual Pennsylvanians more of a voice in how statewide...
By RONALD CASTILLE and ROBERT C. HEIM The Philadelphia Inquirer Our Pennsylvania legislature appears poised to turn a bad idea — electing appellate judges — into an even worse idea — making appellate judge elections regional, instead of statewide. Earlier this week, the Pennsylvania House Judiciary...