Oct 21, 2015 3 min read

HARRISBURG – A national Republican group is airing a TV attack ad to kick off what it says is a two-week blitz to influence the campaign for a record three open seats on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

The Washington, D.C.-based Republican State Leadership Committee, which focuses on electing Republicans to state-level offices, is the first out-of-state group to spend heavily in the seven-way race. It said its “initial investment” exceeds $1 million, including a second TV ad.

The ad criticizes Democrat Kevin Dougherty, a Philadelphia judge, for placing a girl in the custody of her aunt in a 2002 truancy case. Nine years later, in 2011, the aunt was arrested for torturing her niece and keeping mentally disabled adults in a basement dungeon to steal their Social Security checks.

Dougherty’s campaign said his decision to give the aunt custody was supported by Philadelphia’s Department of Human Services, a child advocate and the child’s mother. It also says he has never been accused of wrongdoing in the case.

Campaign spokesman Ken Snyder said Dougherty is regarded as a leading advocate for children in the Pennsylvania courts system.

Voters should not be swayed by “a right wing, out-of-state organization funded by wealthy special interests known for airing misleading, sleazy and negative advertising,” he said.

The other 30-second spot released by the group puts a positive spin on the candidacies of two of the three GOP candidates: state Superior Court Judge Judy Olson and state Commonwealth Court Judge Anne Covey.

Olson and Covey are “experienced judges who deliver on keeping violent criminals behind bars, where they belong,” says the male narrator.

The ad’s emphasis on criminal law experience clashed with Covey’s resume, which does not include any judicial experience in criminal courts. As a private lawyer, she specialized in labor and employment law and served on the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board for nine years. Since 2012, she has been a judge on the state Commonwealth Court, where she handles exclusively civil matters.

“That doesn’t mean that she’s not a law-and-order candidate,” said her campaign spokesman, Keith Naughton.

It was unclear why the committee publicized the two female candidates and excluded the other Republican candidate, Adams County Judge Mike George. His campaign did not return a voice mail or an email seeking comment Wednesday.

The committee is a “527” group, so named for the section of the Internal Revenue Code that spells out the rules of its tax-exempt status. Such organizations may raise unlimited funds from individuals, corporations or labor unions for the purpose of influencing elections and policies, but must register with the IRS and report contributions and expenditures.

Pennsylvanians for Judicial Reform, an in-state 527 group headed by Harrisburg lobbyist Mark Singel, the former lieutenant governor and former state Democratic chairman, aired a series of attack ads against the three Republican candidates earlier this month.

In addition to the Republican candidates and Dougherty, the race includes two other Democrats – Superior Court judges David Wecht and Christine Donohue – and Republican-turned-independent Paul Panepinto, a Philadelphia judge.