Judicial Races General Election November 7, 2017
Most times judicial candidates do not want to answer questions for a voter guide, so
we check to see who has endorsed them . . . that tells you a lot about the candidate’s
judicial philosophy!
Judicial Endorsements
Supreme Court – 10 year term (vote for one)
Dwayne Woodruff (D) — Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Democratic Party; recommended by LGBT Gertrude Stein Club Website: http://www.woodruff2017.org/
Sallie Mundy (R) — Highly Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Republican Party; listed as Pro-Life by LifePac; Website: http://www.keepjusticemundy.com/index.html
PA Supreme Court Retention Votes (A ‘yes’ vote retains these judges for another 10 years)
Chief JusticeThomas Saylor (R) — listed as Pro-Life by LifePac
Justice Debra Todd (D) — endorsed by LGBT Gertrude Stein Club
Superior Court – 10 year term (vote for not more than 4)
(mid-level appeals court that takes criminal, civil and family court appeals from counties)
Debbie Kunselman (D) — Highly Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA State Democratic Party and LGBT Gertrude Stein Club Website: www.deborahkunselman.com
Maria McLaughlin (D) — Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by Philadelphia Gay News; Steel City Stonewall LGBT Democrats; AFL-CIO Philadelphia Council; AFSCME; Philadelphia Federation of Teachers; Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club; PA Conference of Teamsters; International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 542; PA Democratic Party; PA Democratic Latino Caucus; PA National Organization for Women; LGBT Gertrude Stein Club
Website: http://www.mclaughlin4superiorcourt.com/
Geoff Moulton (D) — Highly Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Democratic State Committee; Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery County Committees; Steel City Stonewall LGBT Democrats; PA State Education Association; AFL-CIO; Teamsters Joint Council # 53; Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club; PA Democratic Latino Caucus; LGBT Gertrude Stein Club Website: http://www.judgemoulton.com/
Carolyn H. Nichols (D ) — Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by Steel City Stonewall LGBT Democratic Club; PA Democratic State Committee; Philadelphia Democratic City Committee; Allegheny, Montgomery, Chester, Bucks, Delaware County Democratic Committees; AFSCME District Council 33 and 47; Laborers Local 332; Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club; Website: http://www.nicholsforpa.org/
Emil Giordano (R) — Highly Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Republican Party, PA State Troopers Association, Fraternal Order of Policy Star Lodge # 20 [Bethlehem], Fraternal Order of Police Queen City # 10 [Allentown], recommended by PA Pro-Life Federation; listed as Pro-Life by LifePac Website: http://www.emilgiordanoforjudge.com/
Wade A. Kagarise (R) — Recommended by PA Bar Association; ; Endorsed by PA State Troopers Association; PA Republican Party; Bald Eagle Fraternal Order of Police Loge # 51; listed as Pro-Life by LifePac; Website: https://www.facebook.com/KagariseForSuperiorCourt
Mary Murray (R) — Not Recommended by PA Bar Association (for failure to participate); listed as Pro-Life by LifePac Website: http://mary4judge.com/
Craig Stedman (R) — Highly Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Republican Party; listed as Pro-Life by LifePac; Website: http://stedmanforjudge.com/
Jules Mermelstein (Green Party) — Not Recommended by PA Bar Association (for failure to participate); endorsed by PA State Education Association; endorsed by Democracy for America; a volunteer attorney for the ACLU Website: http://www.mermelstein4judge.org/about
PA Superior Court Retention Vote (A ‘yes’ vote retains this judge for another 10 years)
Judge Jacqueline Shogan — Recommended by PA Pro-Life Federation
Commonwealth Court – 10 year term (vote for not more than 2)
(handles matters in which government agencies are a party)
Ellen Ceisler (D) — Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by Democratic Committees of Montgomery, Delaware, Dauphin and Chester counties; Allegheny County Labor Council; United Coal Miners of PA; Philadelphia Federation of Teachers; PA Chapter of the International Association of Firefighters; the International Association of Firefighters from Pittsburgh (Local 1), Philadelphia (Local 22), Allentown (Local 302) and Bethlehem (Local 735); Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club; PA National Organization for Women, State Senator Daylin Leach; LGBT Gertrude Stein Club Website: https://www.ceislerforpa.com/
Irene M. Clark (D) — Not Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by Plumbers Local 690; Steel City Stonewall LGBT Democrats; LGBT Gertrude Stein Club Website: ireneclarkforjudge.com
Christine Fizzano Cannon (R) — Highly Recommended by PA Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Republican Party; PA Professional Fire Fighters Association; Delaware County Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 27; PA State Police, Pioneer Lodge # 37; listed as Pro-Life by LifePac; Website: https://fizzanocannonforjudge.com/
Paul Lalley (R) — Recommended by PA Bar Association; highly recommended by Allegheny County Bar Association; Endorsed by PA Republican Party; listed as Pro-Life by LifePac Website: http://www.lalley4judge.com/
Language to Proposed Constitutional Amendment (Vote Yes or No):
“Shall the Pennsylvania Constitution be amended to permit the General Assembly to enact legislation authorizing local taxing authorities to exclude from taxation up to 100 percent of the assessed value of each homestead property within a local taxing jurisdiction, rather than limit the exclusion to one-half of the median assessed value of all homestead property, which is the existing law?”
American Family Association of Pennsylvania, P.O. Box 1048, Franklin, PA 16323/814-271-9078/http://afaofpa.org