How Pennsylvania voters reacted to big national spending on judicial retention

This article is made possible through Spotlight PA’s collaboration with Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting.

Pennsylvania voters were out Tuesday to decide whether three state Supreme Court justices deserve another 10-year term, a normally sleepy race that drew national political attention this year.

But despite the millions of dollars spent on the contests, many voters said they hadn’t seen much of the political messaging about the race.

Some voters said they wanted to send a message to President Donald Trump by voting to retain the justices. Others said they felt the justices weren’t following the law. Few voters of any political persuasion seemed familiar with the judges’ specific rulings.

The three Supreme Court justices up fo