All 10 of the candidates for Bucks County Court of Common Pleas have been invited to participate in a nonpartisan candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Bucks County, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 15.
The forum will be held at the Middletown Township Municipal Center, 3 Municipal Way, Langhorne.
School board and judicial candidates have the right to cross-file for the Municipal Primary, allowing them to appear on both the Democratic and Republican ballots. All 10 candidates for the Court of Common Pleas have cross-filed.
Should the top vote getters be the same on both tickets, it is conceivable that the winners could be determined by the Municipal Primary. In recent years, Municipal Primary elections have less than 13 percent of registered voters participating, making the weight of every vote that much greater.
Judges are elected for 10-year terms for the Court of Common Pleas, conceivably serving until the mandatory retirement age of 75. The Court of Common Pleas hears all criminal, civil, family, and orphan’s (probate) matters.
The court currently consists of 13 judges, and is located in Doylestown. It supervises all Adult Probation, Juvenile Probation (including the Bucks County Youth Center), and Domestic Relations services.
As of January 2020, the number of Common Pleas judges will increase from 13 to 15. One of the current Bucks County judges, Judge Rae B. Boylan, is retiring at the conclusion of her term, creating a third seat to be filled.
All the candidates for the Court of Common Pleas, as well as the other Bucks County races, have been sent an email from LWV of Bucks County, with an Invitation to Participate in the League’s 2019 primary election voter guide. The email provides instructions and a link for ease in participating.
Voters are encouraged to visit the League of Women Voter’s website,
Vote411.org, where this online voters’ guide will be viewable a week prior to the election.
Registered voters who are unable to vote at your polling place on Election Day, you may apply for an absentee ballot. Visit
VotesPA.com, the Pennsylvania Department of State’s website for voter forms and information, or call the Bucks County Board of Election at 215-348-6154.
