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Patrick Connelly

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Patrick Connelly
Image of Patrick Connelly
Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas
Tenure
Present officeholder
Term ends

2028

Elections and appointments
Last elected

November 7, 2017

Education

Bachelor's

Boston College

Law

West Virginia University College of Law

Contact


Patrick Connelly is a judge for the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in Pennsylvania. Connelly won the seat in the general election on November 7, 2017.

Biography

Connelly earned his undergraduate degree from Boston College and his J.D. from West Virginia University College of Law. Connelly is an attorney in private practice.[1]

Elections

2017

See also: Pennsylvania local trial court judicial elections, 2017

Pennsylvania held local judicial elections on November 7, 2017. A primary election occurred on May 16, 2017. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was March 7, 2017. Candidates and recently appointed judges of the Courts of Common Pleas must initially run in partisan elections. Subsequent terms are won through retention elections. Elections for the Magisterial District Courts are always partisan. Pennsylvania allows cross-filing for candidates running in partisan elections. Most candidates run in both the Democratic and Republican primaries.[2]

Patrick Connelly (Democratic/Republican) and incumbent David Spurgeon (D) defeated Mary McGinley (R) in the general election for two seats on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.[3]

Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, General Election, 2017
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic/Republican Green check mark transparent.png Patrick Connelly 42.98% 154,080
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png David Spurgeon Incumbent 36.26% 129,990
     Republican Mary McGinley 20.77% 74,455
Total Votes 358,525
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "2017 Municipal Election," accessed December 21, 2017


The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for two open seats on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.[4]

Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, Democratic Primary, 2017
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.png Patrick Connelly 28.05% 53,844
Green check mark transparent.png David Spurgeon Incumbent 23.41% 44,939
Mary McGinley 22.47% 43,132
Rosemary Crawford 9.72% 18,662
Pauline Calabrese 9.38% 18,013
Jessica Lynch 6.86% 13,166
Write-in votes 0.11% 217
Total Votes 191,973
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "2017 Primary Judge of the Court of Common Pleas - Allegheny," accessed May 16, 2017


The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for two open seats on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.[5]

Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, Republican Primary, 2017
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.png Mary McGinley 22.46% 12,959
Green check mark transparent.png Patrick Connelly 21.35% 12,322
David Spurgeon Incumbent 19.12% 11,033
Pauline Calabrese 13.08% 7,549
Rosemary Crawford 12.58% 7,256
Jessica Lynch 11.04% 6,373
Write-in votes 0.36% 209
Total Votes 57,701
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "2017 Primary Judge of the Court of Common Pleas - Allegheny," accessed May 16, 2017

2015

Connelly filed to run for the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas but withdrew his candidacy on March 25.[6]

2013

See also: Pennsylvania judicial elections, 2013

Connelly ran for the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.[7] He cross-filed in both Democratic and Republican primaries, losing the Republican with 8.8% of the vote and losing the Democratic with 4.4%.[8]

Selection method

See also: Partisan election of judges

The 439 judges of the court of common pleas are elected to 10-year terms in partisan elections. Candidates may cross-file with both political parties for the partisan primaries, which are followed by general elections where the primary winners from each party compete.[9][10] Judges must run in yes-no retention elections if they wish to continue serving after their first term. A separate part of the ballot is designated for these elections, and judges' names appear without respect to party affiliation.[9][11]

  • The president judge of each Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas is chosen by either peer vote or seniority, depending on the size of the court. Statewide, all courts composed of more than seven individuals must select their chief judge by peer vote. Those with seven or fewer members select their chief by seniority.[9][12]

Qualifications
To serve on an appellate or general jurisdiction court, a judge must:[9]

  • have state residence for at least one year;
  • be a district resident for at least one year (for common pleas judges);
  • be a member of the state bar; and
  • be under the age of 75.

While retirement at 75 is mandatory, judges may apply for senior judge status. Senior judges may serve as such until the last day of the calendar year in which they turn 78.[12]

See also

External links

Footnotes