Tuesday’s primaries saw incumbent judges pull ahead in three of the four races for seats on the Washington State Supreme Court. A major campaign is now set for November, which could refresh up to five of the court’s nine seats. Usually, elections feature only three positions, but this year the ballot includes five seats—because of recent retirements and one judge’s decision not to seek re-election, as well as another judge reaching the mandatory retirement age.
This election cycle is unique: all five seats are contested, and the two open seats without incumbent judges will be competitive—something that hasn’t happened in the past 15 years. These elections could change the direction of a court that in recent years has often acted more decisively than the state legislature. It has struck down the death penalty and the state’s drug possession law, and it has also revised court rules to combat racial bias. In addition, the court is expected to consider a challenge to a new tax on high earners—one that could uphold, sidestep, or overturn one of the most important precedents in the state’s legal history, the 1933 decision that banned an income tax.
Washington uses not traditional party primaries, but a “top-two” system: all candidates, regardless of party, compete in a single primary, and voters choose any candidate; only the top two vote-getters advance to the November ballot—even if both belong to the same party. In that system, party organizations are not allowed to officially “nominate” a candidate—the outcome is determined by voters. The 1933 ruling at the center of this debate is based on the state constitution’s requirement for uniform taxation: the tax rate must be the same for all taxpayers, which effectively barred a progressive income tax and left Washington as one of the few U.S. states without a personal income tax. The new tax on high earners—such as the 2021 capital gains tax—technically is not structured as an “income tax,” but as an excise tax on the realization of profit, allowing it to get around the restriction. In 2023, the court already ruled that such a tax is constitutional; however, a full-blown progressive income tax on the wealthy would require either a direct reconsideration of the 1933 precedent or an amendment to the state constitution.
In the race for the only open seat that appeared on the primary ballot, Mason County Superior Court judge David Stevens leads with 36% of the vote; he is backed by the Washington State Council of Police and Sheriffs. Second is King County Superior Court judge Jamie Hook with 33%, supported by Gov. Bob Ferguson and Rep. Pramila Jayapal. Third is Court of Appeals judge Mike Dias with 31%. A former civil rights attorney, Dias is backed by Attorney General Nick Brown and former Gov. Jay Inslee. Preliminary results indicate that Stevens and Hook are the ones expected to advance to the November ballot.
The gap in support between Stevens and Hook also reflects the political split between the areas they represent. King County is the core of the Seattle metro area, home to technology companies, universities, and a diverse, highly educated population that overwhelmingly votes for Democrats. Mason County is a rural and suburban area in the west of the state, reliant on logging, manufacturing, and a naval base, with a higher share of white working-class residents and more conservative leanings. This is a nationwide pattern: cities tend to favor progressive left politics, while smaller and rural counties trend conservative. At the same time, King County contains nearly a third of the state’s population, so its dominance makes Washington overall “blue,” even though most counties vote against Seattle.
The second open seat, which only two candidates are seeking—Court of Appeals judge Ian Birch and King County Superior Court judge Sean O’Donnell—was not on the primary ballot, so they will face off in November instead. It’s worth noting that judges are elected to six-year terms, but most of the court’s current members—six of the nine—were initially appointed by the governor to fill vacancies.
Two recent appointees of Gov. Ferguson are also leading in their races. Collin Melody, who previously headed the civil rights division in the attorney general’s office and was appointed late last year to replace the retiring Mary Yu, received 51%, finishing ahead of tax attorney Scott Edwards, who had 30%, and Laura Kuhberg, who is currently serving as judge pro tempore of Snohomish County Superior Court, with 18%. Teo Angelis, an intellectual property specialist appointed this year after Barbara Madsen retired, received 34%. Just about tied with him is former Federal Way Municipal Court judge Dave Larson with 33%, followed by Sharronda Amamilo with 21% and Greg Miller with 12%.
Chief Justice Debra Stephens is the only incumbent judge on these elections who earned her seat through election rather than gubernatorial appointment, and she is leading the race for re-election with 55% of the vote. She has held the position since 2008 and has a significant fundraising advantage over her three challengers—none of whom have served as a judge: Navy veteran and tax attorney Todd Bloom at 28%, former public defender Karim Murchan at 11%, and David Shelvey at 7%, who runs a family-law practice in Sumner.
Based on: WA Supreme Court elections make for momentous primary