Pennsylvania voters will elect judges to serve on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Superior Court, and Commonwealth Court. These courts handle important legal matters and appeals at the state level.

To find out exactly what you’ll be voting on based on your address, click on the button below.,

In early 2024, New Voices conducted a voter apathy study to understand why Black folx, young people, and historically marginalized communities feel disconnected from the electoral process. Rather than simply asking how to get people to vote, we asked a deeper question: why doesn’t voting always feel worth it in the first place?

Our findings revealed that voter apathy is not rooted in indifference, but in distrust and disillusionment. Many participants shared that they feel ignored by political leaders, that promises go unfulfilled, and that voting has not translated into meaningful change in their daily lives. Despite this, the majority still intend to vote, though often without confidence in the system.

Key themes included:

- Disillusionment with leadership: Many see politics as unresponsive to community needs.

- Disconnect between issues and voting: Voters want clear links between policies and their lived experiences, such as maternal health, economic justice, and safety.

- Desire for year-round engagement: Communities want consistent, relational organizing. Not just election-time outreach.

We conducted this study because traditional voter engagement strategies often fail to speak to the realities of Black communities. By using a Reproductive Justice framework, we connect civic participation to deeply personal issues like health, safety, and autonomy. Showing that voting is part of a larger strategy for building community power.

This work is important to us because voter apathy is often misunderstood. It is not that people don’t care, but that they demand accountability, transparency, and long-term investment. Addressing voter suppression and apathy requires moving beyond turnout and building sustainable pathways for trust, education, and shared power alongside the people who need it the most.

Polling Place Changes & Closures: In Philadelphia, polling locations in North & West Philly are often relocated last-minute, leading to confusion and long lines. In Pittsburgh, consolidations in Black neighborhoods like the Hill District force voters to travel farther.

Strict ID Laws & Confusion: PA’s strict voter ID law was struck down in 2014, but misinformation persists. many Pennsylvania voters are still told they need a photo ID.

 Long Lines & Under-Resourced Precincts: Majority-Black districts in both cities often get fewer machines and poll workers, causing multi-hour waits.

Mail-In Ballot Barriers: In Philadelphia, thousands of ballots were tossed in 2024 for being“naked ballots”, meaning they were missing the required secrecy envelope. In Pittsburgh, many ballots were rejected for missing handwritten dates.

Intimidation & Aggressive Poll Watching: Both cities see challengers concentrated in Black precincts where intimidating and aggressive "poll watchers" will stalk polling locations and dissuade marginalized groups from going in to vote. Past tactics include uniformed officers near PHL polling sites.

Voter Roll Purges & Eligibility Confusion: Voter purges are often done without informing the voter and disproportionately affect renters, students, and low-income residents. Many formerly incarcerated voters in PA wrongly believe they cannot vote.