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Utah Supreme Court elections

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There are five justices on the Utah Supreme Court. For more information about these elections, visit the Utah judicial elections page.

Judicial selection

See also: Judicial selection in Utah


The five justices of the supreme court are selected through assisted appointment. The governor selects a nominee from a list of recommended candidates from a judicial nominating commission. The nominee then must attain approval from the Utah Senate.

New appointees serve for at least three years, after which they must run in a yes-no retention election. If retained, supreme court justices serve subsequent terms of ten years.[1]

Qualifications

To serve on the Utah Supreme Court, a judge must be:

  • a citizen of the United States;
  • a state resident for at least five years;
  • admitted to practice law in the state;
  • at least 30 years old; and
  • no more than 75 years old.[1]

Chief justice

The chief justice of the supreme court is selected by peer vote. The chief justice of the supreme court serves in that capacity for four years.[1]

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts

When a vacancy occurs on the court, the governor appoints a replacement from a list of seven names recommended by a nominating commission. The nominee then must attain approval from the Utah Senate. New appointees serve for at least three years, after which they must run in a yes-no retention election. If retained, supreme court justices serve subsequent terms of ten years.[1]

The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.

Elections

See also: Utah Supreme Court elections, 2030


There are no official candidates yet for this election.


See also: Utah Supreme Court elections, 2026

Diana Hagen's seat


There are no official candidates yet for this election.


Jill Pohlman's seat


There are no official candidates yet for this election.


See also: Utah Supreme Court elections, 2024

Utah Supreme Court

Matthew Durrant was retained to the Utah Supreme Court on November 5, 2024 with 77.3% of the vote.

Retention Vote
%
Votes
Yes
 
77.3
 
958,760
No
 
22.7
 
281,663
Total Votes 1,240,423

The results have been certified. Source

See also: Utah Supreme Court elections, 2022

Utah Supreme Court

Paige Petersen was retained to the Utah Supreme Court on November 8, 2022 with 82.7% of the vote.

Retention Vote
%
Votes
Yes
 
82.7
 
757,044
No
 
17.3
 
158,668
Total Votes 915,712

The results have been certified. Source

See also: Utah Supreme Court elections, 2020

Utah Supreme Court

John A. Pearce was retained to the Utah Supreme Court on November 3, 2020 with 81.5% of the vote.

Retention Vote
%
Votes
Yes
 
81.5
 
1,025,585
No
 
18.5
 
232,407
Total Votes 1,257,992

The results have been certified. Source

See also: Utah Supreme Court elections, 2018

Utah Supreme Court

Deno Himonas was retained to the Utah Supreme Court on November 6, 2018 with 78.6% of the vote.

Retention Vote
%
Votes
Yes
 
78.6
 
688,473
No
 
21.4
 
187,038
Total Votes 875,511

The results have been certified. Source
Previous election results


See also

Utah Judicial Selection More Courts
Seal of Utah.png
Judicialselectionlogo.png
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Courts in Utah
Utah Court of Appeals
Utah Supreme Court
Elections: 202520242023202220212020201920182017
Gubernatorial appointments
Judicial selection in Utah
Federal courts
State courts
Local courts

Footnotes