On October 18, two environmental organizations announced they are investing more than $250,000 in an Independent Expenditure for the open seat on the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, which they said is critical to protecting Pennsylvanians’ constitutional right to “clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic, and esthetic values of the environment.”

“There is no more important imperative this election cycle than protecting our pro-environment and pro-democracy majority on the PA Supreme Court,” said Molly Parzen, Executive Director of Conservation Voters of PA. “Given the role of the Supreme Court in deciding the fate of laws and regulations that protect our air, our water, and our vote, it is critical we turn out every environmentally minded voter we can.”

Conservation Voters of PA Victory Fund, in partnership with Earthjustice Action, is spending more than $200,000 on digital ads for Dan McCaffery.

The spots launched last week and are targeted at 175,000 voters across the Commonwealth who are likely to be motivated by a pro-environment message.  The ads run through Election Day and were tested by data scientists for efficacy.

The groups said the digital ads highlight the support McCaffery’s opponent, Carolyn Carluccio, has received from billionaires and allies of corporate polluters and the danger of judges who repeatedly side with polluters, endangering efforts to combat climate change.

This campaign is an extension of an Earthjustice Action project in the 2022 midterm elections that educated voters about the important role the courts play in protecting the environment.

In addition to the digital ads, CVPAVF is spending $50,000 on an aggressive field campaign in Bucks County and the Lehigh Valley, crucial swing areas in statewide elections.

CVPA's field organizing team is focusing on approximately 25,000 pro-environment voters, knocking on doors and both calling and texting voters in support of McCaffery.

“The importance of this election for [thePennsylvania] Supreme Court cannot be overemphasized,” said Parzen. “Our courts are incredibly important when it comes to environmental policymaking.

“The Pennsylvania Supreme Court will decide the fate of the commonwealth’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and, as we saw in 2020, can serve as our last line of defense for our democracy. We cannot allow a candidate allied with corporate polluters and funded by billionaires to become one of just seven justices on the state’s highest court.

“Washington, DC Republican-appointed judges on the U.S. Supreme Court have made it easier for billionaires and corporations to spew smog into the air we breathe and dump toxic chemicals into the water we drink. These same bad actors want a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice who will rule in their favor and against protecting our right to clean air, clean water and the preservation of our natural resources.”

“We cannot allow that to happen,” said Parzen. “We must elect Dan McCaffrery to the PA Supreme Court.”

[Posted: October 18, 2023]

10/23/2023