Pa. election 2023: What to know about the judicial retention questions on the November ballot

HARRISBURG — Near the bottom of this year’s general election ballot, Pennsylvania voters will be asked simple questions with long-term consequences.

Depending on where they live, voters will decide whether at least two state judges should “be retained for an additional term” of 10 years.

All state judges — from those who preside over municipal courts to the justices of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court — initially run in partisan races. Once elected, the judges on Pennsylvania’s powerful appellate and Common Pleas courts serve 10-year terms — often holding their seats for decades with little notice.