John S. Arrowood
John S. Arrowood (Democratic Party) is a judge for Seat 1 of the North Carolina Court of Appeals. He assumed office in 2017. His current term ends on December 31, 2026.
Arrowood (Democratic Party) is running for re-election for the Seat 1 judge of the North Carolina Court of Appeals. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 3, 2026. The Democratic primary for this office on March 3, 2026, was canceled.
He was appointed by Democratic Governor Roy Cooper to succeed Judge Doug McCullough. Arrowood formerly served on the court from 2007 through 2008 and was appointed by Gov. Mike Easley to fill a vacancy.[1]
Biography
Education
Arrowood received his undergraduate degree from Catawba College. He earned his J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.[2][1]
Career
- 2017-Present: Judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals
- 2010-2017: Lawyer in private practice at the firm James, McElroy and Diehl, PA
- 2007-2008: Judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals
Elections
2026
See also: North Carolina intermediate appellate court elections, 2026
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
General election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1
Incumbent John S. Arrowood (D) and Michael Byrne (R) are running in the general election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1 on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | John S. Arrowood (D) | |
 | Michael Byrne (R)  | |
| ||||
| = 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. | ||||
Democratic primary
The Democratic primary scheduled for March 3, 2026, was canceled. Incumbent John S. Arrowood (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1 without appearing on the ballot.
Republican primary
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1
Michael Byrne (R) defeated Matt Smith (R) in the Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1 on March 3, 2026.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Michael Byrne | 51.5 | 300,883 |
 | Matt Smith | 48.5 | 282,853 | |
| Total votes: 583,736 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Campaign finance
Endorsements
Arrowood received the following endorsements. To send us additional endorsements, click here.
- NC AFL-CIO
- Sierra Club North Carolina
2018
General election
General election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1
Incumbent John S. Arrowood defeated Andrew Heath in the general election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John S. Arrowood (D) | 50.8 | 1,855,728 |
 | Andrew Heath (R) | 49.2 | 1,797,929 | |
| Total votes: 3,653,657 (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. | ||||
2014
See also: North Carolina judicial elections, 2014
Arrowood ran for election to the North Carolina Court of Appeals.
General: He was defeated in the general election on November 4, 2014, after receiving 14.4 percent of the vote. He competed against Marion R. Warren, Chuck Winfree, John Marsh Tyson, Elizabeth Davenport Scott, Tricia Shields, Jody Newsome, Marty Martin, Hunter Murphy, Keischa Lovelace, Ann Kirby, Abraham P. Jones, Sabra Jean Faires, Daniel Patrick Donahue, J. Brad Donovan, Lori G. Christian, Jeffrey M. Cook, Betsy Bunting and Valerie Johnson Zachary.
[3]
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
John S. Arrowood has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to John S. Arrowood asking him to fill out the survey. If you are John S. Arrowood, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.
Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?
Any candidate running for elected office, at any level, can complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Survey. Completing the survey will update the candidate's Ballotpedia profile, letting voters know who they are and what they stand for. More than 25,000 candidates have taken Ballotpedia's candidate survey since we launched it in 2015. Learn more about the survey here.
You can ask John S. Arrowood to fill out this survey by using the buttons below or emailing info@keepjudgearrowood.com.
Campaign finance summary
Campaign finance information for this candidate is not yet available from OpenSecrets. That information will be published here once it is available.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
|
Candidate North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1 |
Officeholder North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 1 |
Personal |
Footnotes
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
