Election Day proved, once again, that when working people stand up together, we make great things happen. Because our strong labor community turned out voters, all five labor-recommended judicial candidates were swept into office.
David Wecht, Kevin Dougherty and Christine Donohue were elected to 10-year terms on the state Supreme Court, and will influence laws in Pennsylvania for decades to come. Alice Dubow was elected to PA Superior Court and Michael Wojcik was elected to the Commonwealth Court.
"These victories would not have been possible without your hard work across the state, where AFTPA members made thousands of calls to fellow union members, participated in election canvassing and talked to family and friends about this crucial election," AFTPA President Ted Kirsch said.
AFTPA endorsed these candidates at its 2016 Biennial Convention in Philadelphia in June.
In Philadelphia, PFT-backed mayor candidate Jim Kenney and City Council candidate Helen Gym won election, "changing the conversation about education" in Philadelphia - newspapers said.
"In 2016 we will redouble our efforts to win the White House and elect representatives in Congress and in the state House and Senate who share our values and aspirations for our students and our communities," Kirsch added in a statement.
He added that AFTPA will continue to advocate for a state budget that funds our schools and colleges fully and fairly and closes the state budget deficit by enacting a reasonable tax on natural gas drillers.
We will succeed because, as Tuesday's election proved, we c"an do great things for our students, our schools and our communities when we work together," he said.
The Nov. 3 election marks the first time in more than 300 years that three seats on the state’s high court are open at the same time.
AFT Pennsylvania delegates also endorsed Alice Dubrow for Pennsylvania Superior Court and Michael Wojcik for the single, Commonwealth Court seat. Superior and Commonwealth courts are Pennsylvania’s appellate courts.
“This is a historic election,” said Ted Kirsch, president of AFT Pennsylvania. “The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania will preside over some of the most important cases in recent
history, including challenges to paid sick-leave laws, campaign finance, legislative redistricting, discrimination, laws affecting workers' rights and the constitutionality of how the state legislature funds public schools. For Philadelphia teachers and staff, all cases involving the district and the union must go before the state Supreme Court. “All of these candidates are extremely well qualified and are strong supporters of Pennsylvania’s working families.”
The endorsements were made by delegates to AFT Pennsylvania’s Biennial Convention, which met June 26-28 in Philadelphia. AFT Pennsylvania represents 26,000 public, private and charter school teachers and support staff; faculty, graduate assistants and staff community colleges and four-year universities and state employees across the state.