North Carolina Supreme Court elections, 2016

2016 State Judicial Elections
Part 1: Overview
Part 2: Supreme Courts
Part 3: Partisanship
Part 4: Changes in 2016

One seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court was up for nonpartisan election on November 8, 2016. A primary was held on June 7. This seat was held by Justice Robert H. Edmunds Jr. heading into the election. Justice Edmunds ran to remain in his seat after a court battle that overturned North Carolina's 2015 retention election law, under which Justice Edmunds would have faced only a yes-no retention vote, rather than an opponent in a contested election. Challenger Judge Michael R. Morgan advanced through the primary along with Justice Edmunds. The two faced each other on November 8.

A justice on the North Carolina Supreme Court serves an eight-year term. North Carolina judicial elections are nonpartisan; the top two candidates in a primary advance to the general election, regardless of party. Republican-affiliated justices held a 4-3 majority heading into the 2016 election.

HIGHLIGHTS

Robert H. Edmunds Jr. was defeated by challenger Judge Michael R. Morgan.

North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Edmunds Jr. was to have faced the first retention election in North Carolina. However, a North Carolina court struck down the retention election law as unconstitutional; a divided state supreme court (3-3) upheld this ruling.

The election and office are nonpartisan, but North Carolina state supreme court justices often have known political party affiliations.

Going into the election, Republican-affiliated justices held a 4-3 majority on the court. With Edmunds defeated, the balance of the court shifted to 4-3 in favor of Democratic-affiliated justices.

This election was one of Ballotpedia's top 10 state-level races in 2016.
Click here to read the full list.

Race background

North Carolina judicial elections are nonpartisan, but this does not mean no information is available about candidates' political affiliation. Rather, it means that when a primary election is held, it does not winnow down the candidates to one from each party; it winnows down the candidates to two for each seat, regardless of party. In North Carolina's supreme court elections, candidates do not declare their party affiliations and those party affiliations do not appear on the ballot, but their party affiliations are known from political associations and/or previous partisan elections.

In June 2015, Gov. Pat McCrory (R) signed into law a bill requiring sitting justices on the North Carolina Supreme Court to seek re-election in retention elections rather than in nonpartisan competitive elections, effective in 2016. The law specified that for a sitting justice to be re-elected, he or she must receive at least 50 percent "yes" votes in yes-no retention elections.

Justice Robert Edmunds was the only supreme court justice up for re-election in 2016. He filed to stand for retention by voters.

In March 2016, however, a three-judge panel of Wake County Superior Court judges ruled the retention law unconstitutional, stating that "a retention election is not an 'election' for the office of supreme court justice as required by the constitution."

The state appealed the ruling to the North Carolina Supreme Court. On April 13, 2016, the court heard oral arguments on the constitutionality of the retention election law. Justice Robert Edmunds was recused from hearing the case, since he had filed to stand for retention in 2016. On May 6, the remaining justices split 3-3 on the question, and therefore the lower court's ruling to overturn the law was upheld.

Three challengers then filed to run in a contested election against Justice Edmunds, including attorney Sabra Faires, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. Because there were more than two candidates, a primary election was required. North Carolina's regularly scheduled primary was held March 15, in the wake of the ruling striking down the retention law and before any provision could be made for a contested judicial election. The state elections board set a special primary for June 7. Justice Edmunds and challenger Judge Michael R. Morgan finished first and second, respectively, of the four candidates and went on to face each other in the November 8 general election.

General election candidates

Seat 2

	Justice Robert Edmunds (Defeated)
	Most recent position: Justice, Supreme Court of North Carolina Past experience: Judge, North Carolina Court of Appeals Edmunds is considered a Republican-affiliated judge.

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	Justice Edmunds: "As the only candidate with experience on the Supreme Court, my record is an open book. I enjoy bipartisan support of most of North Carolina’s leading lawyers, including four former Chief Justices, former presidents of the North Carolina State Bar and North Carolina Bar Association and almost all of North Carolina’s elected sheriffs."

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	Judge Michael Morgan (Winner)
	Most recent position: Superior Court Judge, 10th Judicial District, Third Division of the Superior Court, North Carolina Past experience: District Court Judge, North Carolina 10th Judicial District Morgan is considered a Democratic-affiliated judge.

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	Judge Morgan: "With more than 26 years of current judicial service, 24 years of current teaching tenure at The National Judicial College instructing other judges, and a long record of community involvement and uplift, I have a unique preparation in the ability to legally analyze, assiduously study yet humanly understand the challenges of society with which the Supreme Court is presented."

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Click [show] to view candidates who were defeated in the primary election.

Defeated in June 7 primary Attorney Sabra Faires Most recent position: Attorney, Bailey & Dixon, LLP Past experience: General Counsel, North Carolina House co-Speaker Richard Morgan Sabra Faires: "I am an independent unaffiliated voter and am running for Supreme Court Justice to get politics out of our highest court. If elected, I pledge to be diligent and fair and to apply the law without ideological agenda. I fought for the right to run in this election by successfully challenging an unconstitutional law passed last year by the N.C. Legislature prohibiting everyone but the current justice from running. But for my lawsuit, voters would not have a choice in this election." Attorney Daniel Robertson Most recent position: Attorney in private practice Past experience: General Counsel, Bank of the Carolinas Daniel Robertson: "Unlike most of the candidates for the Supreme Court, I am a political outsider who has never held political office, lives outside the Raleigh beltway and has extensive experience working directly for North Carolina citizens and businesses. I want to serve on the North Carolina Supreme Court to ensure that the rights and liberties of all North Carolinians are fully preserved and that the laws are equally and fairly applied to all."

Election results

November 8 general election

Michael R. Morgan defeated incumbent Robert H. Edmunds, Jr. in the general election for the North Carolina Supreme Court, Seat 2.

North Carolina Supreme Court, Seat 2, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Michael R. Morgan	54.47%	2,157,927
Robert H. Edmunds, Jr. Incumbent	45.53%	1,803,425
Total Votes (2,704 of 2,704: 100%)		3,961,352
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

June 7 primary election

North Carolina Supreme Court Primary, Seat 2, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Robert H. Edmunds, Jr. Incumbent	48.01%	235,405
Michael R. Morgan	34.36%	168,498
Sabra Jean Faires	12.04%	59,040
Daniel G. Robertson	5.59%	27,401
Total Votes (2710 of 2710 precincts reporting: 100%)		490,344
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

Low turnout

Turnout in the primary election was low. One estimate placed it at about 6.65 percent, with at least one county falling below 5 percent of registered voter turnout. Another estimate placed it at about 7.7 percent turnout statewide, with at least one county as high as high as 10 percent. Turnout is historically low for special elections; this primary was not on the regular election schedule and was called in the wake of court decisions that required an extra primary. Thus, around 7 percent of the state's registered voters chose the two November state supreme court candidates.

Endorsements

The candidates received the following endorsements.

Key endorsements
Robert Edmunds	Michael Morgan
Gerald Arnold, Raleigh (Former Chief Judge)	Indy Week
Rhoda Billings, Lewisville (Former Chief Justice)	People's Alliance PAC
Sid Eagles, Raleigh (Former Chief Judge)	Sierra Club of Western North Carolina
Jim Exum, Greensboro (Former Chief Justice)	North Carolina Advocates for Justice
Burley Mitchell, Raleigh (Former Chief Justice)	North Carolina Fraternal Order of Police
Beverly Lake, Raleigh (Former Chief Justice)	North Carolina AFL-CIO
Sheriffs of 95 out of 100 North Carolina counties	North Carolina Association of Educators
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory (R)	Replacements Ltd. PAC
North Carolina Conservatives Political Action Committee	Bladen County Improvement Association
Grass Roots North Carolina	Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People
	Henderson-Vance Black Leadership Caucus
	Wake County Voter Education Coalition
	Raleigh-Wake Citizens Association

Campaign finance

The campaign finance data below shows the candidates' contributions and expenditures up to the end of the second quarter (June 30, 2016).

Michael Morgan campaign finance 2016

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The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may not represent all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer, and campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Satellite spending

Main article: Political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns

Groups unaffiliated with candidates or campaigns—such as political action committees, super PACs, nonprofit public welfare organizations, and labor unions—often spend money to influence the outcome of an election. This satellite spending can take the form of express advocacy, which encourages votes for or against a candidate, or issue advocacy, which supports broad political or social issues. Some groups are restricted on which kind of advocacy they can engage in based on their tax status.

Disclosure regulations vary from state to state and vary based on type of organization, complicating the process of determining a comprehensive picture of all spending in a given election.

For example, nonprofits are not always required to disclose their donors to the government; they submit financial information to the federal government through regular tax filings with the Internal Revenue Service, which are only publicly available through a Freedom of Information Act request. Other organizations are required to report election expenditures to a state elections division.

Primary

North Carolina Chamber of Commerce ad for Justice Edmunds

The North Carolina Chamber of Commerce spent $450,000 before the primary running a television ad in support of Justice Edmunds. The ad's premise is "keeping children safe." It alludes to Edmunds' background as a prosecutor and describes him as having "thrown the book at predators, refusing to let them use loopholes—instead, locking them up and keeping them off the internet and streets." Funding for the ad was contributed by the Institute for Legal Reform ($250,000) and the Judicial Crisis Network ($200,000).

Ads

Before the primary election, the North Carolina Chamber of Commerce ran a television ad (shown above) supporting Edmunds.

Between the primary and the general elections, the Brennan Center noted ad buys of $132,280 for Morgan and $20,078 for Edmunds as of October 6.

Candidate forum

The North Carolina Bar Association Foundation hosted a forum between Justice Edmunds and Judge Morgan. In the 20-minute video presentation, the candidates discuss their experience as judges on the bench. Justice Edmunds reiterates that his record as a justice is an open book, with most decisions available online. Judge Morgan re-emphasizes his 27 years as a lower-court judge and expresses concern about politicization on the court, including decisions that he says call into question the separation of government powers.

NC Bar Association Foundation, "NC Supreme Court Race: Bob Edmunds vs Mike Morgan," September 8, 2016

Political composition

North Carolina's supreme court justices are elected in nonpartisan races. The partisan affiliations listed below are commonly attached to the justices based on voting record and past political affiliation.

The court's balance in 2016 stood at 4-3 in favor of Republican-affiliated justices. With Judge Morgan's defeat of Justice Edmunds, however, the balance shifted to 4-3 in favor of Democrat-affiliated justices.

Chief Justice Mark Martin
Justice Paul Martin Newby
Justice Robert H. Edmunds Jr.
Justice Barbara Jackson
Justice Robin Hudson
Justice Cheri Beasley
Justice Sam Ervin

Selection

See also: Judicial selection in North Carolina

The court consists of six associate justices and one chief justice, although the number of justices has varied from time to time. Justices are chosen by nonpartisan elections to eight-year terms. If there is a vacancy in the court, a justice is chosen through the assisted appointment method of judicial selection. A justice who is appointed to a vacancy by the governor must run in an election that is at least 60 days after the vacancy occurred in order to serve a full term.

In 1989, the Judicial Selection Study Commission released a report regarding judicial selection. The commission recommended that justices be appointed to a seat on the court. However, the idea did not gain enough support in the North Carolina House of Representatives to change the process.

Qualifications

To serve on any court in North Carolina individuals must be:

• attorneys and
• under the age of 72.

Supreme court justices in North Carolina must retire before the last day of the month in which they turn 72.

Chief justice

The chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court is elected by voters for an eight-year term.

State profile

Demographic data for North Carolina
	North Carolina	U.S.
Total population:	10,035,186	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	48,618	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	69.5%	73.6%
Black/African American:	21.5%	12.6%
Asian:	2.5%	5.1%
Native American:	1.2%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.1%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.4%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	8.8%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	85.8%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	28.4%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$46,868	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	20.5%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in North Carolina. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in North Carolina

North Carolina voted Republican in six out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, six are located in North Carolina, accounting for 2.91 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. North Carolina had six Retained Pivot Counties, 3.31 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More North Carolina coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in North Carolina
• United States congressional delegations from North Carolina
• Public policy in North Carolina
• Endorsers in North Carolina
• North Carolina fact checks
• More...

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'North Carolina supreme court' OR 'North Carolina court election' OR 'North Carolina elections 2016'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

North Carolina Supreme Court elections, 2016 - Google News

See also

North Carolina	Judicial Selection	More Courts
Courts in North Carolina North Carolina Court of Appeals North Carolina Supreme Court	Elections: 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 Gubernatorial appointments Judicial selection in North Carolina	Federal courts State courts Local courts

External links

• Supreme Court of North Carolina

Footnotes

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North Carolina courts

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Federal courts:

Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina

State courts:

Supreme Court of North Carolina • North Carolina Court of Appeals • North Carolina Superior Courts • North Carolina District Courts

State resources:

Courts in North Carolina • North Carolina judicial elections • Judicial selection in North Carolina