North Dakota Supreme Court elections, 2020

2020 State Judicial Elections
2021 » « 2019
Overview
Supreme Courts Overview
Appellate Courts Overview
View judicial elections by state:
Select a state:AlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyomingSelect court type:Trial courtsAppellate courtsSupreme courtsReset

The seat of one North Dakota Supreme Court justice, Jon Jay Jensen, was up for nonpartisan election on November 3, 2020. Jensen ran unopposed and won re-election to the court.

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

North Dakota did not modify any procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

Candidates and results

Jensen's seat

General election

General election for North Dakota Supreme Court

Incumbent Jon Jay Jensen won election in the general election for North Dakota Supreme Court on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jon Jay Jensen (Nonpartisan)	99.1	290,346
		Other/Write-in votes	0.9	2,703

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 293,049
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for North Dakota Supreme Court

Incumbent Jon Jay Jensen advanced from the primary for North Dakota Supreme Court on June 9, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jon Jay Jensen (Nonpartisan)	99.6	128,347
		Other/Write-in votes	0.4	570

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 128,917
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Past elections

2018

See also: North Dakota Supreme Court elections, 2018

General election

General election for North Dakota Supreme Court

Incumbent Lisa Fair McEvers defeated Robert V. Bolinske in the general election for North Dakota Supreme Court on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lisa Fair McEvers (Nonpartisan)	65.6	178,124
		Robert V. Bolinske (Nonpartisan)	33.9	92,088
		Other/Write-in votes	0.5	1,458

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 271,670 (100.00% precincts reporting)
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for North Dakota Supreme Court

Incumbent Lisa Fair McEvers and Robert V. Bolinske advanced from the primary for North Dakota Supreme Court on June 12, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lisa Fair McEvers (Nonpartisan)	62.9	57,432
✔		Robert V. Bolinske (Nonpartisan)	37.1	33,871

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 91,303
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Click [show] at the right to view more past election results.

2016 See also: North Dakota Supreme Court elections, 2016 November 8 general election Jerod Tufte defeated Robert V. Bolinske Sr. in the general election for Dale Sandstrom's seat on the North Dakota Supreme Court. North Dakota Supreme Court 2016, Sandstrom's Seat, 2016 Candidate Vote % Votes Jerod Tufte 60.69% 166,229 Robert V. Bolinske Sr. 38.63% 105,805 Write-in votes 0.68% 1,851 Total Votes (432 of 432 precincts reporting: 100%) 273,885 Source: North Dakota Secretary of State Official Results Incumbent Lisa Fair McEvers ran unopposed in the general election for Lisa McEvers' seat on the North Dakota Supreme Court. North Dakota Supreme Court 2016, McEvers' Seat, 2016 Candidate Vote % Votes Lisa Fair McEvers Incumbent (unopposed) 98.98% 261,255 Write-in votes 1.02% 2,700 Total Votes (433 of 432 precincts reporting: 100%) 263,955 Source: North Dakota Secretary of State Official Results June 14 primary North Dakota Supreme Court Primary, Dale Sandstrom's Seat, 2016 Candidate Vote % Votes Jerod Tufte 55.03% 54,107 Robert V. Bolinske Sr. 44.65% 43,899 Write-in votes 0.32% 311 Total Votes 98,317 Source: North Dakota Secretary of State North Dakota Supreme Court Primary, Lisa McEvers' Seat, 2016 Candidate Vote % Votes Lisa Fair McEvers Incumbent (unopposed) 99.67% 98,203 Write-in votes 0.33% 330 Total Votes 98,533 Source: North Dakota Secretary of State

About the North Dakota Supreme Court

See also: North Dakota Supreme Court

The North Dakota Supreme Court is the court of last resort for the state of North Dakota. The five justices on the court are elected to 10-year terms in nonpartisan elections.

Political composition

This was the political composition of the supreme court heading into the 2020 election.

■ Daniel Crothers		Appointed by Gov. John Hoeven (R) in 2005; elected in 2008 and 2012
■ Jon Jay Jensen		Appointed by Gov. Doug Burgum (R) in 2017
■ Lisa Fair McEvers		Appointed by Gov. Jack Dalrymple (R) in 2013; elected 2016
■ Jerod Tufte		Elected in 2016
■ Gerald VandeWalle		Appointed by Gov. Arthur A. Link (D) in 1978; elected in 2014

Selection

See also: Nonpartisan election of judges

The five justices of the North Dakota Supreme Court are chosen in nonpartisan elections to serve 10-year terms. Judicial hopefuls compete in a primary election, and the top two candidates advance to the general election in November. At the expiration of a judge's term, he or she must run for re-election to continue serving. In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement with help from a judicial nominating commission. Alternatively, the governor may call a special election to fill the vacancy. Appointed judges serve for at least two years, after which they must run in the general election to finish the remainder of the unexpired term.

Qualifications

To serve on this court, a judge must be:

• a U.S. and state citizen and
• a licensed attorney.

Selection of the chief justice

The court's chief justice is chosen by vote of the supreme and district court judges to serve a five-year term.

See also

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

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• North Dakota Supreme Court

Footnotes

North Dakota courts

---

Federal courts:

Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of North Dakota • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of North Dakota

State courts:

North Dakota Supreme Court • North Dakota Court of Appeals • North Dakota District Courts • North Dakota Municipal Courts

State resources:

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

Ballotpedia

About

Overview • What people are saying • Support Ballotpedia • Contact • Contribute • Job opportunities

---

Executive: Leslie Graves, Founder and CEO • Gwen Beattie, Chief Operating Officer

Communications: Alison Graves, Director of Communications • Carley Allensworth • Abigail Campbell • Frank Festa • Sarah Groat • Nathaniel Harwood • Dillon Redmond
External Relations: Geoff Pallay, Director of External Relations • Ken Carbullido, Vice President of Election Product and Technology Strategy • Ashley Fleming • Thomas Mardik • Hannah Nelson
Operations: Meghann Olshefski, Director of Operations • Amanda Herbert • Mandy Morris • Caroline Presnell • Kelly Rindfleisch
Tech: Matt Latourelle, Director of Technology Operations • Ryan Burch • Kirsten Corrao • Beth Dellea • Travis Eden • Tate Kamish • Margaret Kearney • Eric Lotto • Joseph Sanchez • Mary Susmitha

Contributors: Scott Rasmussen

---

Editorial Content

Josh Altic, Director of Content • Daniel Anderson, Associate Director of Elections & Data • Cory Eucalitto, Associate Director of Features • Ryan Byrne, Managing Editor of Ballot Measures • Mandy McConnell, Managing Editor of News • Doug Kronaizl, Managing Editor of Local Expansion • Abbey Smith, Managing Editor of Elections • Janie Valentine, Managing Editor of Law • Joel Williams. Managing Editor of Events • Andrew Bahl • Jaclyn Beran • Marielle Bricker • Joseph Brusgard • Emma Burlingame • Kelly Coyle • Jon Dunn • Thomas Ellis • Nicole Fisher • Joseph Greaney • Thomas Grobben • Brianna Hosea • Molly Kehoe • Tyler King • Glorie Martinez • Norm Leahy, Senior Editor • Nathan Maxwell • Jimmy McAllister • Brandon McCauley • Ellie Mikus • Ellen Morrissey • Mackenzie Murphy • Kaley Platek • Samantha Post • Adam Powell • Annelise Reinwald • Ethan Rice • Spencer Richardson • Victoria Rose • Briana Ryan • Myj Saintyl • Maddy Salucka • Emma Soukup • Alexis Thacker • Mina Vogel • Samuel Wonacott • Trenton Woodcox