TagState courts

On March 3, 2020, Texans will have the opportunity to vote in primaries for six of the seven seats on Texas’ two courts of last resort holding elections this year.

Texas is unique in that it is one of two states in the nation with two courts of last resort: a Supreme Court and a Court of Criminal Appeals. The Texas Supreme Court is the court of last resort for civil matters. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is the state’s court of last resort for criminal matters. Both have nine judgeships.

A Republican primary will take place in the race for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place Three, featuring Bert Richardson and Gina Parker.

The Democratic primaries and candidates are:

• Texas Supreme Court, Place One: Amy Clark Meachum and Jerry Zimmerer.
• Texas Supreme Court, Place Six: Kathy Cheng and Larry Praeger.
• Texas Supreme Court, Place Seven: Brandy Voss and Staci Williams.
• Texas Supreme Court, Place Eight: Peter M. Kelly and Gisela Triana.
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place Three: William Demond, Elizabeth Davis Frizell, and Dan Wood.
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place Four: Tina Yoo Clinton and Steven Miears.

There will also be a general election for Place Nine on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Brandon Birmingham is running unopposed in the Democratic primary and David Newell is running unopposed in the Republican primary.

In addition to those primaries, Libertarian candidate Mark Ash will be running for Place 1 on the Supreme Court, Libertarian candidate William Brian Strange will be running for Place Seven of the Texas Supreme Court, and Libertarian candidate Tom Oxford will be running for Place Eight of the Texas Supreme Court.

The primary is scheduled for March 3, 2020, and a primary runoff is scheduled for May 26, 2020. The general election will occur on November 3, 2020.

Last week’s Wisconsin Supreme Court primary featured the highest turnout in at least 20 years, with just under 704,000 voters participating. The next-highest primary turnout during this period was in 2016 when 566,000 voters participated in the primary.

Since 2000, there have been 15 other elections for state Supreme Court, six of which had primaries (a Wisconsin Supreme Court primary is only held if more than two candidates file; the top two finishers in the primary advance to the general election).

Higher primary turnout has typically been associated with higher general election turnout. The 2016 general election had the highest turnout of any during this time period, including the nine without primaries, at 1.95 million. The record-low 278,000-voter turnout in the 2003 primary was followed by the lowest turnout in any general election where a primary was held.

Turnout in a general election has exceeded 1 million three time: in 2011, 2016, and 2019. The conservative-backed candidate won in all three elections. The three lowest turnout figures for contested elections during this time were in the 2009, 2003, and 2015 elections, ranging between 794,000 and 813,000. The liberal candidate-backed won in 2009 and 2015, while the conservative-backed candidate won in 2003.

Incumbent Daniel Kelly and Jill Karofsky were the top-two finishers in the Feb. 18 primary this year and will advance to the April 7 general election. Kelly received 50.1% of the primary vote. Of the six other primaries since 2000, a candidate received more than 50% of the vote in three. In all three, that candidate went on to win the general election.

This year’s general election coincides with Wisconsin’s April 7 presidential primaries. Eight notable Democrats are running in that party’s presidential primary as of Feb. 25. President Donald Trump will be the only candidate on the Republican presidential primary ballot.

The result of the state supreme court general election stands to impact future control of the court. A Kelly win would preserve the current 5-2 conservative majority. Assuming that no justices leave the bench early, this would prevent liberals from winning a majority on the court any earlier than 2026. A win for Karofsky would narrow the conservative majority to 4-3 and would mean that the 2023 election will decide control of the court.

Click here to learn more.

Additional reading:

• Daniel Kelly (Wisconsin)
• Jill Karofsky

Eight candidates have applied to fill a vacancy on the Alaska Supreme Court. The vacancy will occur when Justice Craig Stowers retires on June 1, 2020.

Stowers was appointed to the court in 2009 by Governor Sean Parnell (R). Before that, he was a judge on the Alaska Third Judicial District Court from 2004 to 2009, an attorney in private practice from 1987 to 2004, and a law clerk to Alaska Supreme Court Justice Warren Matthews from 1986 to 1987 and to Judge Robert Boochever on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit from 1985 to 1986. He received his undergraduate degree in biology, with honors, from Blackburn College in 1975 and his J.D. from the University of California Davis in 1985.

The five justices of the Alaska Supreme Court are each appointed by the governor from a list of two or more nominees compiled by the Alaska Judicial Council (AJC). New justices serve an initial term of at least three years, after which the justice must stand for retention in an uncontested yes-no election to remain on the bench. Subsequent terms last ten years. The AJC is an independent state commission, established by the Alaska Constitution, that is responsible for screening applicants for judicial vacancies. The AJC has seven members–three lawyers, three nonlawyers, and the chief justice of the state supreme court.

The following eight individuals applied to fill the upcoming vacancy:

• Dario Borghesan: A chief assistant attorney general in Anchorage, Alaska. Borghesan graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 2008.
• Judge Dani Crosby: A superior court judge in Anchorage. Crosby graduated from Gonzaga University School of Law in 1996.
• Kate Demarest: A senior assistant attorney general in Anchorage. She graduated from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2008.
• Judge Jennifer Stuart Henderson: A superior court judge in Anchorage. She graduated from Yale Law School in 2001.
• Judge Yvonne Lamoureux: A superior court judge in Anchorage. She graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2003.
• Margaret Paton Walsh: A chief assistant attorney general in Anchorage. She graduated from Harvard Law School in 2004.
• Judge Paul A. Roetman: A superior court judge in Kotzebue, Alaska. He graduated from Regent University School of Law in 1999.
• Judge Jonathan Woodman: A superior court judge in Palmer, Alaska. He graduated from the Ohio State University College of Law in 1993.

The Alaska Supreme Court is the state’s court of last resort. In addition to Stowers, it includes the following justices:

• Daniel Winfree – Appointed by Gov. Sarah Palin (R)
• Joel Harold Bolger – Appointed by Gov. Sean Parnell (R)
• Peter Jon Maassen – Appointed by Gov. Parnell
• Susan Carney – Appointed by Gov. Bill Walker (I)

In 2020, there have been eight supreme court vacancies in seven of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. The vacancies were caused by retirements. Four vacancies are in states where a Democratic governor appoints the replacement. Three are in states where a Republican governor appoints the replacement. One vacancy is in a state where the state supreme court votes to appoint the replacement.

Click here to read more.

On February 10, 2020, Chief Justice Robert Thomas (R) announced that he will retire from the Illinois Supreme Court on February 29. In the event of a midterm vacancy, the Illinois Supreme Court appoints an interim judge. The interim judge serves until the next general election occurring at least 60 days after his appointment. The judge must then run in a partisan election to remain on the court. The Illinois Supreme Court has decided that following Chief Justice Thomas’ retirement, Appellate Justice Michael Burke will assume his seat as an interim judge.

Alongside Thomas’ seat (to be held by Burke), there will be three other seats on the ballot in November. Lloyd Karmeier (R) announced his retirement on December 6, 2019, and his seat will be up for partisan election on November 3, 2020. P. Scott Neville (D) was chosen to fill a vacancy on the court in 2018 and his seat will also be up for regular election on November 3, 2020. Thomas Kilbride (D) will also face retention election on November 3, 2020.

The retirement of Thomas and Karmeier leaves Justice Rita Garman the lone Republican on the seven-member Court.

Additional Reading:

• Illinois Supreme Court elections, 2020
• Courts in Illinois
• Illinois judicial elections

Incumbent Daniel Kelly and Jill Karofsky were the top-two finishers in Tuesday’s nonpartisan Wisconsin Supreme Court primary and will advance to the April 7 general election. As of 9:10 p.m. CT, Kelly had received 48.8% of the vote to Karofsky’s 38.0% and Fallone’s 13.3% with 57.3% of precincts reporting.

Although the race is officially nonpartisan, Kelly is a member of the court’s conservative majority and received support from conservative groups. Karofsky and Fallone indicated they would join the liberal minority and received support from liberal groups.

Recent election history suggested that either Karofsky or Fallone was likely to be eliminated in Tuesday’s primary. Between 2005 and 2019, every contested Wisconsin Supreme Court election resulted in a conservative-backed candidate and a liberal-backed candidate advancing from the primary rather than two justices of the same ideological leaning.

The April 7 general election will determine if and when ideological control of the court could change in the future. A Kelly win would preserve the current 5-2 conservative majority. Assuming that no justices leave the bench early, this would prevent liberals from winning a majority on the court any earlier than 2026. A Karofsky win would narrow the conservative majority to 4-3 and mean that the 2023 election would decide control of the court.

Recent Wisconsin Supreme Court general elections have been decided by narrow margins. In 2019, Brian Hagedorn defeated Lisa Neubauer by a 50.2% to 49.7% margin. The widest margin of victory in a contested Wisconsin Supreme Court election in the past decade was Ann Walsh Bradley’s 58.1% to 41.9% win over James Daley in 2015.

Click here to learn more.

Additional reading:

• Daniel Kelly
• Jill Karofsky
• Ed Fallone

Illinois Supreme Court Associate Justice Robert Thomas is retiring on February 29, 2020. Thomas announced plans to join law firm Powers Rogers following his retirement.

Justice Thomas joined the Second District of the Illinois Supreme Court after winning election in November 2000. Thomas served as the Chief Justice of the court from 2005 to 2008. He previously served as a judge of the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit Court in Illinois from 1988 to 1994, and as a Justice of the Illinois Appellate Court from 1994 to 2000.

Thomas earned a B.A. in government from the University of Notre Dame in 1974. In 1981, he earned a J.D. from Loyola University School of Law. Prior to beginning his legal career, Thomas was a kicker for the Chicago Bears in the National Football League.

Under Illinois law, the Illinois Supreme Court is responsible for appointing an interim judge in the event of a midterm vacancy. The interim judge serves until the next primary election occurring at least 60 days after his or her appointment, at which point the judge must run in a partisan election to remain on the court. Illinois Supreme Court Justices are selected by popular vote in partisan elections and serve 10-year terms, after which they must compete in nonpartisan retention elections to remain on the court.

Because the vacancy from Thomas’ retirement is set to occur less than 60 days before the state’s next primary on March 3, his replacement was selected by the Illinois Supreme Court in a vote of the justices. The court appointed appellate Justice Michael J. Burke to serve from March 1, 2020, to December 5, 2022.

Unlike most states, supreme court justices in Illinois are elected to represent specific districts. The seven justices are divided among five districts (three allocated to Cook County and the others divided evenly among the other four districts across the state) and are voted into office by the residents of their respective regions. Three other states—Kentucky, Louisiana, and Mississippi—use a similar system.

The Illinois Supreme Court is the state’s court of last resort. It currently includes the following justices:
• Mary Jane Theis — Elected in 2010
• Anne M. Burke — Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2006; elected Chief Justice by her peers in 2019
• P. Scott Neville — Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2018
• Thomas Kilbride — Elected in 2000
• Rita Garman — Appointed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2001
• Lloyd Karmeier — Elected in 2004

The Illinois Supreme Court will see another retirement in 2020. Justice Lloyd Karmeier is retiring from the court on December 6, 2020. His seat will be filled via partisan election.

In 2020, there have been eight supreme court vacancies in seven of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. The vacancies were caused by retirements. Four vacancies are in states where a Democratic governor appoints the replacement. Three are in states where a Republican governor appoints the replacement. One vacancy is in a state where the state supreme court votes to appoint the replacement.

Click here to learn more about the Illinois Supreme Court justice vacancy.

Additional reading:
State supreme court vacancies, 2020
Illinois Supreme Court
Judicial selection in Illinois

On February 12, the Florida Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from the City of Coral Gables of a ruling by the Third District Court of Appeal that upheld the state’s preemption of local bans on plastic packaging. Preemption occurs when law at a higher level of government is used to overrule authority at a lower level of government.

The city of Coral Gables banned the retail use of expanded polystyrene (plastic foam) in February 2016. In July 2016, the Florida Retail Federation (FRF) filed a lawsuit against the city, and Judge Jorge Cueto of the Eleventh Circuit Court upheld the city’s polystyrene ban in February 2017.

On August 14, 2019, the Third District Court of Appeal reversed the ruling, stating, “Because the trial court erred in finding [Florida Statutes sections 403.708(9), 403.7033, and 500.90] unconstitutional and concluding that the City’s Polystyrene Ordinance was not preempted, we reverse.” After the Third District Court denied the city’s motion to certify the question to the Florida Supreme Court, Coral Gables invoked the supreme court’s discretionary jurisdiction.

Click here to learn more.

On January 16, 2020, Judge Maxine White was appointed to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, District 1, by Governor Tony Evers (D) to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of former judge Joan Kessler. White took her seat on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals on February 7, 2020. She will serve the remainder of Evers term, which ends on July 31, 2021.

Before White was appointed to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, she served as the chief judge of Wisconsin’s First Judicial District and as presiding judge of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court’s Family Division. Before becoming a judge, White served as a legal advisor for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia, an assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and as a manager for the Social Security Administration.

The Wisconsin Court of Appeals is the state’s intermediate appellate court. The court is composed of 16 judges from four districts. Selection of state court judges in Wisconsin occurs through nonpartisan elections. In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement.

Three Wisconsin Court of Appeals justices’ seats are up for election in 2020. A nonpartisan election is scheduled for April 7, 2020.

Click here to learn more.

Additional Reading:

• Wisconsin Court of Appeals
• Joan Kessler

A nonpartisan primary will take place on Feb. 18 to narrow the candidate field in the 2020 election of a justice to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Incumbent Daniel Kelly, Ed Fallone, and Jill Karofsky are running in the primary. Kelly is a member of the court’s 5-2 conservative majority. Fallone and Karofsky have each pledged to join the court’s liberal minority. Although the race is officially nonpartisan, Kelly has received support from Republican-affiliated groups and Fallone and Karofsky from Democratic-affiliated groups.

Kelly was appointed to the court in 2016 by then-Gov. Scott Walker (R) to fill a vacancy opened by the retirement of David Prosser. He says that he has the broadest range of legal experience, including as a prosecutor, defense attorney, and litigator.

Fallone is a law professor at Marquette University who ran for state supreme court in 2013. He says that he will bring new perspectives to the bench from his time as a law professor and his work with the Hispanic community and low-income clients.

Karofsky is a judge on the Dane County Circuit Court who was elected in 2017. She says she has the most firsthand experience applying the law and seeing how supreme court decisions impact residents.

All three candidates say they are running to oppose politicization of the court.

The top two finishers in the primary will advance to a general election on April 7. The winner of the general election will begin a 10-year term. A win for either Fallone or Karofsky would reduce the size of the conservative majority on the court to 4-3, meaning control of the court would be at stake during the next election in 2023. A win for Kelly would preserve the current 5-2 balance, meaning that control of the court will not be at stake until the 2026 election assuming no justices leave the bench early.

Recent Wisconsin Supreme Court elections have been decided by narrow margins. In the 2019 election, conservative Brian Hagedorn defeated liberal Lisa Neubauer by a margin of 50.2% to 49.7%. Setting aside the 2017 election (in which the incumbent was unopposed), the widest margin of victory for a Wisconsin Supreme Court election in the past decade was Ann Walsh Bradley’s 58.1% to 41.9% win in 2015.

Click here to learn more.

Additional reading:

• Daniel Kelly
• Ed Fallone
• Jill Karofsky
• Wisconsin Supreme Court elections, 2019
• Wisconsin Supreme Court elections, 2018