The terms of five Alabama Supreme Court justices, including the chief justice, expired on January 13, 2019. Partisan elections were held for each of the five spots on the court on November 6, 2018.
Associate Justice Tom Parker (R) defeated Bob Vance (D) in the chief justice race.
As of the 2018 election, a Democrat hadn't sat on the Alabama Supreme Court since 2011. Sue Bell Cobb (D) resigned as chief justice that year after serving since 2007. She was the only Democrat on the court at the time of her resignation.[1][2]
In the Republican primary for chief justice on June 5, Parker defeated incumbent Lyn Stuart (R). Stuart had been named acting judge after Roy Moore's suspension in 2016. Moore was suspended after directing lower court judges to decline to issue same-sex marriage licenses despite the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges. Parker was described as "a long-time ally of Roy Moore" by the Associated Press. He highlighted his social conservatism and his conflicts with groups including the Southern Poverty Law Center. Parker was first elected to the court as a justice in 2004.
Bob Vance, the Democratic candidate, ran against Moore in 2012 and lost by 3.6 percentage points. In 2018, Vance had a fundraising advantage over Parker through October 19, having raised $1 million to Parker's $714,000.[3]
Candidates for places 1, 2, and 3 on the court were unopposed in the general election. The place 4 election was contested, and Jay Mitchell (R) defeated Donna Wesson Smalley (D).
This section lists noteworthy endorsements issued in this election, including those made by high-profile individuals and organizations, cross-party endorsements, and endorsements made by newspaper editorial boards. It also includes a bulleted list of links to official lists of endorsements for any candidates who published that information on their campaign websites. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you are aware of endorsements that should be included, please click here.
Chief justice candidate Bob Vance (D) was endorsed by three Republicans who once sat on the court: former Chief Justice Drayton Nabers, former Acting Chief Justice Gorman Houston, and former Associate Justice Tom Woodall.[4]
Campaign advertisements
This section shows advertisements released in this race. Ads released by campaigns and, if applicable, satellite groups are embedded or linked below. If you are aware of advertisements that should be included, please email us.
Bob Vance
Vance released an ad on October 9, 2018. Click here to view it.
Tom Parker
"Parker for CJ Radio: Mob Rule" - Parker campaign ad, released October 20, 2018
The Alabama Supreme Court is composed of nine justices who are elected in state-wide partisan elections. A full term on the court is six years. Judicial elections take place during Alabama's general elections, which are held every two years in even-numbered years.
Political composition
This was the political composition of the supreme court heading into the 2018 election. Justices on the Alabama Supreme Court are elected to their seats, and replacements are appointed by the governor in the case of midterm vacancies. Justice William Sellers was appointed by Gov. Kay Ivey (R) to fill a vacancy. The remaining eight justices were elected to their current terms.[5]
All justices on the Alabama Supreme Court are elected for six-year terms in partisan elections.[6] The composition of the court consists of eight associate justices and one chief justice. Vacancies, which can occur when a justice dies, resigns, retires, or is removed from office, are filled through appointments by the governor of Alabama. The justice must run for the seat in the general election at least one year after being appointed.[6]
Qualifications
To be considered a candidate for the supreme court, the person must:
Be licensed to practice law in Alabama.
Have lived in Alabama for at least one year.
Be 70 years of age or younger at the time of candidacy.[7]
Selection of the chief justice
The chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court is elected by popular vote.[8]
Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states. No counties in Alabama are Pivot Counties.
In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Alabama with 62.1 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 34.4 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Alabama voted Democratic 53.33 percent of the time and Republican 40 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, Alabama voted Republican all five times.
↑Chief Justice Lyn Stuart was elected as an Associate Justice. Stuart was appointed Chief Justice by Gov. Kay Ivey on April 26, 2017, to fill a vacancy.
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