Washington Supreme Court elections, 2024
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The terms of three Washington Supreme Court justices expired on January 12, 2025. The three seats were up for nonpartisan election on November 5, 2024. A primary was scheduled for August 6, 2024. The filing deadline was May 10, 2024.
With a total of nine justices on the Washington Supreme Court, one third of the seats are on the ballot on November 5, 2024. Justice Susan Owens will reach the mandatory retirement age and is not eligible for re-election. The terms of Steven Gonzalez and Sheryl McCloud expire on January 12, 2025, opening their seats, and they ran unopposed.[1]
Candidates and results
Position 2
General election
General election for Washington State Supreme Court Position 2
Sal Mungia defeated Dave Larson in the general election for Washington State Supreme Court Position 2 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Sal Mungia (Nonpartisan)  | 50.1 | 1,644,253 |
 | Dave Larson (Nonpartisan) | 49.4 | 1,624,309 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5 | 16,654 | ||
| Total votes: 3,285,216 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Washington State Supreme Court Position 2
Sal Mungia and Dave Larson defeated Todd Bloom and David Shelvey in the primary for Washington State Supreme Court Position 2 on August 6, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Sal Mungia (Nonpartisan) | 43.4 | 762,797 |
| ✔ | | Dave Larson (Nonpartisan) | 36.4 | 640,116 |
 | Todd Bloom (Nonpartisan) | 16.3 | 286,298 | |
 | David Shelvey (Nonpartisan) | 3.4 | 59,676 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.4 | 7,347 | ||
| Total votes: 1,756,234 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Michelle Adams (Nonpartisan)
Position 8
General election
General election for Washington State Supreme Court Position 8
Incumbent Steven Gonzalez won election in the general election for Washington State Supreme Court Position 8 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Steven Gonzalez (Nonpartisan) | 97.6 | 2,564,372 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.4 | 61,866 | ||
| Total votes: 2,626,238 | |||
| = 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
The primary election was canceled. Incumbent Steven Gonzalez advanced from the primary for Washington State Supreme Court Position 8.
Position 9
General election
General election for Washington State Supreme Court Position 9
Incumbent Sheryl Gordon McCloud won election in the general election for Washington State Supreme Court Position 9 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Sheryl Gordon McCloud (Nonpartisan) | 97.5 | 2,534,783 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.5 | 65,479 | ||
| Total votes: 2,600,262 | |||
| = 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
The primary election was canceled. Incumbent Sheryl Gordon McCloud advanced from the primary for Washington State Supreme Court Position 9.
Judges not on the ballot
- Susan Owens (Position 2)
Voting information
- See also: Voting in Washington
About the Washington Supreme Court
- See also: Washington Supreme Court
The Washington State Supreme Court is the court of last resort in Washington. It is based in Olympia in the Temple of Justice on the state capitol grounds. The court has nine justices. They are elected to six-year terms in nonpartisan elections.
Political composition
This was the political composition of the supreme court heading into the 2024 election.
| ■ Raquel Montoya-Lewis | Appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee (D) in 2019; elected in 2020 | |
| ■ Steven Gonzalez | Appointed by Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) in 2011; elected in 2012 and 2018 | |
| ■ Charles W. Johnson | Elected in 1990, 1996, 2002, 2008, 2014, and 2020 | |
| ■ Barbara Madsen | Elected in 1992, 1998, 2004, 2010, 2016, and 2022 | |
| ■ Sheryl McCloud | Elected in 2012 and 2018 | |
| ■ Susan Owens | Elected in 2000, 2006, 2012, and 2018 | |
| ■ Debra Stephens | Appointed by Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) in 2007; elected in 2008, 2014, and 2020 | |
| ■ G. Helen Whitener | Appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee (D) in 2020; elected in 2022 | |
| ■ Mary Yu | Appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee (D) in 2014; elected in 2014, 2016, and 2022 |
Selection
- See also: Nonpartisan election of judges
The nine justices of the supreme court are selected through contested elections without reference to party affiliation and must run for re-election when their terms expire. Justices serve for six years. In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement. The appointee serves until the next general election, at which point he or she may run to serve for the remainder of the predecessor's term.[2] If the resignation and subsequent appointment take place after the filing period for that year's elections opens, the appointee must stand in the next general election in order to remain on the bench.
Qualifications
To serve on the supreme court, a judge must be:
- admitted to practice law in Washington; and
- under the age of 75.[3]
Selection of the chief justice
The chief justice of the supreme court is selected through a peer vote and has a set term of four years.[4]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Bolts, "Your State-by-State Guide to the 2024 Supreme Court Elections," accessed April 23, 2024
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Washington," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Judicial Selection Methods," accessed August 18, 2021
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Judicial Selection Methods," accessed August 18, 2021
Federal courts:
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Washington, Western District of Washington • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Washington, Western District of Washington
State courts:
Washington Supreme Court • Washington Court of Appeals • Washington Superior Court • Washington District Courts • Washington Municipal Courts
State resources:
Courts in Washington • Washington judicial elections • Judicial selection in Washington
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