While judicial races don’t get as much coverage as higher profile elections like senator or governor, court elections can still have a large impact on the state’s politics and public policy.
Judicial races may not draw the same spotlight as contests for governor or U.S. Senate, but they play a pivotal role in shaping Pennsylvania’s laws, policies, and everyday life. This year’s elections for Commonwealth and Superior Courts feature candidates with backgrounds in public service, private practice, and community leadership. Here’s a look at who is running — and what they bring to the bench.
Commonwealth Court
Stella Tsai – Democrat
Since 2016, Tsai has served on Philadelphia’s Court of Common Pleas, initially appointed and later securing a full ten-year term. She highlights her diverse judicial experience, having presided over cases in criminal, civil, family, and orphans’ court divisions.
Tsai’s legal career began in public service, leading the administrative law unit in Philadelphia’s law department from 2000 to 2003. She later transitioned into private practice, joining Archer & Greiner as a partner in business litigation. At the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, she teaches as an adjunct professor, focusing on regulatory compliance, land use, and ethics.
Outside the courtroom, Tsai is an advocate, having volunteered to defend voting, immigrant, and civil rights. She also led the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Pennsylvania as president and held roles within the Pennsylvania Bar Association. Unlike other judicial candidates, she avoids making promises about future rulings but has signaled her values through endorsements.
She received support from Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania Advocates, emphasizing the courts’ role in protecting reproductive rights. The Democratic Party endorsed her bid, and the Pennsylvania Bar Association gave her its highest rating, citing her broad experience and reputation as hardworking, fair, and well-regarded. The Philadelphia Gay News endorsed her in the 2025 Democratic primary, and she also has endorsements from labor unions like the AFL-CIO and the state’s largest teachers’ union, PSEA-PACE.
Matthew Wolford – Republican
Wolford, an Erie-based environmental law lawyer, seeks election to the Commonwealth Court, running against Tsai. With over three decades of legal experience, he represents clients from landowners and farmers to manufacturers and energy companies. His practice involves defending against government enforcement, navigating regulatory challenges, and litigating zoning, easement, and homeowners’ association disputes.
Wolford’s career began in public service, working in the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office as a civil litigator, later becoming deputy attorney general in charge of the Environmental Crimes Section. He also served as a special prosecutor for both the state attorney general and the U.S. attorney in western Pennsylvania. He counseled the Department of Environmental Protection before establishing his private practice.
In addition to law, Wolford has been an adjunct professor at Gannon University for over 20 years, lectured widely for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute and other agencies, and authored a chapter in The Law of Oil & Gas in Pennsylvania. He’s also served on the Presque Isle State Park Advisory Committee and the Presque Isle Partnership.
The Pennsylvania Bar Association rated him “highly recommended,” citing his extensive trial and appellate experience in environmental law, fairness, integrity, and preparation. His campaign, endorsed by the Pennsylvania Republican Party, emphasizes judicial restraint, opposing government overreach. Wolford also received the endorsement of Gunowners of America.
Superior Court
Brandon Neuman – Democrat
Washington County’s Brandon Neuman, a former Pennsylvania House of Representatives member, has served on the Court of Common Pleas since 2018. His signature legislative achievement was a 2015 law speeding rape kit testing and eliminating a backlog. On the bench, Neuman focuses on civil cases, veterans’ court, criminal, and family law matters. In 2022, he issued a ruling requiring Washington County to notify voters of mail ballot errors, allowing them to submit provisional ballots.
Neuman began his legal career in private practice, handling complex civil litigation and representing nursing home residents who suffered abuse or neglect.
On the campaign trail, he attended Democratic events across the state, emphasizing a coalition of endorsements from labor and law enforcement groups. He received support from the Pennsylvania Laborers’ District Council, the Fraternal Order of Police, the State Troopers Association, and the Sheriffs’ Association, despite their political differences.
The Pennsylvania Bar Association rated Neuman “highly recommended,” praising his command of law, written opinions, integrity, fairness, and respect for all parties.
Maria Battista – Republican
Clarion County native Maria Battista has built a career that spans prosecution, state government, and private consulting. Early in her legal career, she worked as a prosecutor in Franklin and Venango Counties before moving into state service, where she became assistant general counsel for both the Department of Health and the Department of State. She served under governors of both parties — Republican Tom Corbett and Democrat Tom Wolf — giving her experience across administrations. She also spent time as a contract specialist with the U.S. Department of Defense.
After leaving state government, Battista entered the private sector and now serves as president of Judge Government Services, a consulting firm. She also made a bid for statewide office in 2023, when she ran unsuccessfully for the Superior Court.
Her relationship with the Republican Party has been a campaign subplot. In 2023, she received the party’s endorsement in her bid for Superior Court. This cycle, however, GOP leaders threw their early support behind Ann Marie Wheatcraft, a Common Pleas judge from suburban Philadelphia. When Wheatcraft lost the primary, the party shifted its backing to Battista, making her the endorsed Republican candidate heading into the general election.
Daniel Wassmer – Keystone (Liberal) Party
Little has been written about Wassmer, the candidate for the Keystone Party, also called the Liberal Party of Pennsylvania. He previously ran for state Attorney General in 2020 and the U.S. Senate seat in 2022. Wassmer’s career reflects a blend of legal expertise, public service, and a wide range of professional interests. A graduate of Adelphi University, he earned his bachelor’s degree in 1983 and went on to complete an MBA in Finance three years later. He then pursued law at New York Law School, receiving his Juris Doctor in 1989. Admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New York, and Connecticut, Wassmer is also licensed before the Federal Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and all of New York’s Federal District Courts.
Wassmer began his professional life in finance, working as a Corporate Trust Administrator at National Westminster Bank, USA, from 1983 to 1989. After entering the legal field, he built his practice in Manhattan and Long Island, handling more than 500 cases across banking, healthcare, corporate law, real estate, estate planning, and personal injury. He later established himself as a solo practitioner, operating offices in both Pennsylvania and New York, before co-founding Wassmer & Hill, LLP, where he served as managing partner for a decade. His work spanned commercial litigation, corporate transactions, employment disputes, environmental law, and estate matters.
In addition to his private practice, Wassmer served as Assistant County Solicitor for Bucks County from 2001 to 2009. He has also held public leadership roles, including commissioner of the Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission and director of the Bucks County Housing Corporation. Since 2002, he has shared his expertise as an adjunct professor at Bucks County Community College, teaching courses in business law, torts, real estate, civil litigation, and legal writing.
Outside of the law, Wassmer is a certified scuba instructor, an avid cyclist, and a licensed pilot — pursuits that mirror his professional drive to explore new challenges and disciplines.
