West Virginia voters re-elected two state Supreme Court justices on June 9
Voters decided races for three of West Virginia's five Supreme Court justices on June 9. These elections, as well as West Virginia’s presidential and statewide primaries, were originally scheduled for May 12 but Gov. Jim Justice (R) postponed them in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Both incumbent justices who ran for a new term—Tim Armstead and John A. Hutchison—were re-elected. Armstead, who currently serves as chief justice, won re-election with 41% of the vote over Richard Neely, who received 36%, and David W. Hummel Jr., who received 23%
Hutchison won re-election with 39% of the vote over Lora Dyer, who finished second with 36%. Justice appointed both Armstead and Hutchison to the court in 2018 to fill vacancies.
A third justice—Margaret Workman—did not seek re-election. William Wooton—a former Democratic state legislator—received 31% of the vote and defeated three other candidates for that seat.
West Virginia Supreme Court justices are elected to 12-year terms in nonpartisan elections. Before 2016, judges were elected in partisan elections. This changed after Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin (D) signed legislation in 2015 making judicial elections in the state nonpartisan. Governors appoint replacements in case of vacancies. Those newly appointed justices must. run in the next scheduled election following their appointment to serve the remainder of their predecessor's term.
Justice, a Republican, originally appointed three of the current justices. The other two were elected to the court in partisan elections. One is a Democrat one is a Republican.
• Evan Jenkins appointed by Gov. Justice
• Beth Walker Elected after running as a Republican
• Margaret Workman Elected after running as a Democrat
• Tim Armstead appointed by Gov. Justice
• John A. Hutchison appointed by Gov. Justice
A total of 344 justices serve on state supreme courts nationwide and 165 of those positions—48%—are chosen through partisan or nonpartisan elections. Another 167—48.5%—are appointed. Two state legislatures—in South Carolina and Virginia—elect state supreme court justices.
Twenty-nine states will hold elections for 67 state supreme court judges on Nov. 3. Voters in five states—Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, West Virginia, and Wisconsin—have already decided elections for state supreme court justices. Click here to learn more about these elections.
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