state Candidates 

2025 Statewide Judicial Candidates

Judge Ann Marie Wheatcraft has dedicated her career to making Chester County a safer and better place to live, work, and raise a family. For the last 13 years, she has served as a Judge on the Chester County Court of Common Pleas and currently serves as its President Judge. During her time on the bench, she has consistently handed out some of the toughest punishments for violent criminals.

In addition to earning a reputation as a tough judge, Ann Marie is also recognized for her compassion for victims and fairness in the courtroom. She has presided over Chester County’s treatment courts including the Drug, Recovery, Mental Health, and Veterans Courts.

Prior to being elected Judge, Ann Marie served as an Assistant District Attorney prosecuting some of Chester County’s most violent crimes including armed robbery, rape, and first-degree murder.

In addition to her Criminal Law experience, Ann Marie has handled Civil, Family and Dependency Court dockets as a Judge. She frequently is asked to give presentations by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts (AOPC) New Judges’ School, the State Trial Court Judge Conference, colleges and law schools and Bar Associations and Continuing Legal Education (CLE) events. Ann Marie is the past President of the Pennsylvania Association of Trial Court Professionals (2022-2024) and is a current Executive Board member.

Ann Marie is the proud mom of two children. Her son is a police officer in Chester County and her daughter is in medical  chool. She enjoys scuba diving and volunteering with Canine Partners for Life fostering and training service dogs, including  courthouse therapy dogs.

Matt Wolford is a proven legal expert with a deep understanding of government and the law. Throughout his career, he has litigated cases in State and Federal courts, as well as quasi-judicial State agencies, many of which were argued before the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court.

Matt is a small business owner who practices law as a solo practitioner in Erie, PA, where he concentrates on environmental law. Before going into private practice, he

served as an Assistant Counsel and Regional Counsel for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”). Prior to joining the DEP, he served as a prosecutor with the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General (“OAG”), Environmental

Crimes Section in Meadville, PA; and as a civil litigation attorney for the OAG’s Torts Litigation Section in Philadelphia, PA. He also served as a special prosecutor of environmental crimes for both the OAG and the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

Matt lectures regularly for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute (now part of the Pennsylvania Bar Association) and has lectured for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Enforcement Training Institute, the DEP, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, Pennsylvania’s Minor Judiciary, the Erie County Bar Association, and various other county bar associations and organizations. He also authored a chapter in

the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s The Law of Oil & Gas in Pennsylvania focusing on oil and gas development on public lands and was an Adjunct Professor at Gannon University in Erie, PA, where he taught a course on environmental law.

Matt is a longtime member of the Presque Isle State Park Complex Advisory Committee and the Presque Isle Partnership. He received his undergraduate degree from Penn State and his Juris Doctorate degree from the Temple University School of Law and is a member of the Erie County and Pennsylvania Bar Associations. He and his wife, Marian, are the proud parents of four children.