Utah Supreme Court elections, 2018
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9 (mail), or Oct. 30 (online or in-person)
- Early voting: Oct. 23 - Nov. 2
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: Yes
- Voter ID: Non-photo ID required
- Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
| 2018 election dates | |
|---|---|
| Deadline to file candidacy | |
| July 16, 2018 | |
| General election | |
| November 6, 2018 | |
| 2018 State Judicial Elections | |
|---|---|
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| Overview | |
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The term of one Utah Supreme Court justice expired on January 6, 2019. That justice had to stand for retention in 2018 in order to remain on the bench.
Candidates
- This was a list of the judges who had to stand for retention in 2018 in order to remain on the bench. Judges may choose not to stand for retention or may retire. In retention elections, a judge stands for a "yes" or "no" vote; no challengers may run in the elections.
General election candidates
General election candidates
- Deno Himonas (Incumbent) (Nonpartisan) ✔
About the Utah Supreme Court
- See also: Utah Supreme Court
The Utah Supreme Court is the court of last resort in Utah. It was established in 1894 when Utah became a state, partly growing out of an earlier territorial supreme court that was established by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1850. The court is composed of five members—a chief justice, an associate chief justice, and three justices—who serve renewable 10-year terms.[1]
Political composition
This is the political composition of the supreme court heading into the 2018 election. Judges are appointed by the governor from a list of names recommended by a nominating commisssion.
| ■ Christine Durham | Appointed by Scott Matheson (D) in 1982, retained most recently in 2014[2] | |
| ■ Matthew Durrant | Appointed by Michael Leavitt (R) in 2000, retained most recently in 2014 | |
| ■ Deno Himonas | Appointed by Gary Herbert (R) in 2014 | |
| ■ Thomas Rex Lee | Appointed by Gary Herbert (R) in 2010, retained in 2014 | |
| ■ John A. Pearce | Appointed by Gary Herbert (R) in 2015 |
Selection
- See also: Assisted appointment
The five justices of the supreme court are selected by assisted appointment. 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.[3][4] 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.[3]
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.[3]
Selection of the chief justice
The chief justice is selected by peer vote. The chief justice serves in that capacity for four years.[3]
State profile
| Demographic data for Utah | ||
|---|---|---|
| Utah | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 2,990,632 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 82,170 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 87.6% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 1.1% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2.2% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 1.1% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.9% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.6% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 13.4% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 91.2% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 31.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $60,727 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 12.7% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Utah. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Utah
Utah voted Republican in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
More Utah coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Utah
- United States congressional delegations from Utah
- Public policy in Utah
- Endorsers in Utah
- Utah fact checks
- More...
Pivot Counties
- See also: Pivot Counties by state
There are no Pivot Counties in Utah. 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.
In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Utah with 45.5 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 27.5 percent. Independent candidate and Utah native Evan McMullin received 21.5 percent of the vote, his strongest showing in a state. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Utah cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 76.7 percent of the time. In that same timeframe, Utah supported Republican candidates more often than Democrats, 73.3 to 23.3 percent. The state favored Republicans in every presidential election between 2000 and 2016.
Presidential results by legislative district
The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Utah. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[5][6]
| In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won seven out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 20.8 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 19 out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 21.9 points. Clinton won six districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections. |
| In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 68 out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 54.4 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 56 out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 30.7 points. |
| 2016 presidential results by state House district | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Obama | Romney | 2012 Margin | Clinton | Trump | 2016 Margin | Party Control |
| 1 | 9.42% | 89.03% | R+79.6 | 10.81% | 62.88% | R+52.1 | R |
| 2 | 9.49% | 88.76% | R+79.3 | 11.45% | 51.57% | R+40.1 | R |
| 3 | 12.34% | 85.57% | R+73.2 | 15.18% | 48.43% | R+33.2 | R |
| 4 | 22.96% | 73.62% | R+50.7 | 30.29% | 33.77% | R+3.5 | R |
| 5 | 10.92% | 87.18% | R+76.3 | 13.60% | 51.67% | R+38.1 | R |
| 6 | 10.18% | 87.91% | R+77.7 | 13.94% | 48.70% | R+34.8 | R |
| 7 | 22.58% | 75.17% | R+52.6 | 24.95% | 47.41% | R+22.5 | R |
| 8 | 32.39% | 64.89% | R+32.5 | 33.89% | 42.27% | R+8.4 | R |
| 9 | 30.35% | 67.18% | R+36.8 | 29.16% | 46.44% | R+17.3 | R |
| 10 | 34.81% | 62.01% | R+27.2 | 37.00% | 38.57% | R+1.6 | R |
| 11 | 24.47% | 73.17% | R+48.7 | 25.28% | 48.10% | R+22.8 | R |
| 12 | 20.44% | 77.27% | R+56.8 | 20.63% | 52.90% | R+32.3 | R |
| 13 | 19.95% | 77.67% | R+57.7 | 20.41% | 47.72% | R+27.3 | R |
| 14 | 21.75% | 75.91% | R+54.2 | 21.48% | 44.83% | R+23.4 | R |
| 15 | 13.20% | 85.22% | R+72 | 15.05% | 49.86% | R+34.8 | R |
| 16 | 22.55% | 75.36% | R+52.8 | 24.02% | 47.62% | R+23.6 | R |
| 17 | 15.44% | 82.73% | R+67.3 | 18.65% | 44.09% | R+25.4 | R |
| 18 | 14.51% | 83.99% | R+69.5 | 18.83% | 43.66% | R+24.8 | R |
| 19 | 19.24% | 78.78% | R+59.5 | 23.75% | 40.60% | R+16.8 | R |
| 20 | 21.05% | 77.07% | R+56 | 25.91% | 40.61% | R+14.7 | R |
| 21 | 27.07% | 70.44% | R+43.4 | 24.26% | 47.55% | R+23.3 | R |
| 22 | 37.41% | 59.20% | R+21.8 | 35.79% | 35.31% | D+0.5 | D |
| 23 | 56.84% | 39.68% | D+17.2 | 59.42% | 21.08% | D+38.3 | D |
| 24 | 61.48% | 33.07% | D+28.4 | 68.79% | 16.04% | D+52.8 | D |
| 25 | 69.65% | 23.70% | D+45.9 | 74.08% | 11.49% | D+62.6 | D |
| 26 | 60.94% | 32.81% | D+28.1 | 64.98% | 19.07% | D+45.9 | D |
| 27 | 6.44% | 92.24% | R+85.8 | 11.91% | 56.88% | R+45 | R |
| 28 | 54.60% | 41.73% | D+12.9 | 64.09% | 18.31% | D+45.8 | D |
| 29 | 13.06% | 85.33% | R+72.3 | 14.40% | 58.81% | R+44.4 | R |
| 30 | 36.99% | 60.36% | R+23.4 | 38.48% | 33.65% | D+4.8 | R |
| 31 | 43.06% | 54.05% | R+11 | 43.41% | 31.30% | D+12.1 | D |
| 32 | 27.09% | 70.42% | R+43.3 | 31.20% | 42.83% | R+11.6 | R |
| 33 | 44.21% | 52.69% | R+8.5 | 44.63% | 31.45% | D+13.2 | R |
| 34 | 39.64% | 57.37% | R+17.7 | 41.60% | 31.42% | D+10.2 | D |
| 35 | 51.49% | 44.22% | D+7.3 | 55.00% | 24.81% | D+30.2 | D |
| 36 | 42.19% | 54.94% | R+12.7 | 49.52% | 26.90% | D+22.6 | D |
| 37 | 40.42% | 56.67% | R+16.3 | 45.86% | 31.84% | D+14 | D |
| 38 | 37.19% | 59.58% | R+22.4 | 37.41% | 33.31% | D+4.1 | R |
| 39 | 35.46% | 61.95% | R+26.5 | 36.62% | 35.54% | D+1.1 | R |
| 40 | 50.87% | 45.38% | D+5.5 | 56.43% | 22.35% | D+34.1 | D |
| 41 | 16.24% | 81.72% | R+65.5 | 18.41% | 49.31% | R+30.9 | R |
| 42 | 23.97% | 73.84% | R+49.9 | 27.04% | 39.88% | R+12.8 | R |
| 43 | 30.88% | 66.58% | R+35.7 | 32.50% | 37.41% | R+4.9 | R |
| 44 | 37.44% | 59.36% | R+21.9 | 40.71% | 33.05% | D+7.7 | R |
| 45 | 34.33% | 62.63% | R+28.3 | 37.99% | 35.99% | D+2 | R |
| 46 | 41.80% | 55.26% | R+13.5 | 47.04% | 32.01% | D+15 | D |
| 47 | 29.03% | 68.70% | R+39.7 | 30.89% | 39.06% | R+8.2 | R |
| 48 | 8.85% | 89.34% | R+80.5 | 15.28% | 49.21% | R+33.9 | R |
| 49 | 33.11% | 64.55% | R+31.4 | 37.68% | 38.47% | R+0.8 | R |
| 50 | 18.79% | 79.57% | R+60.8 | 23.63% | 43.95% | R+20.3 | R |
| 51 | 22.76% | 75.35% | R+52.6 | 27.60% | 46.79% | R+19.2 | R |
| 52 | 18.13% | 79.66% | R+61.5 | 20.72% | 46.22% | R+25.5 | R |
| 53 | 24.78% | 72.98% | R+48.2 | 28.04% | 53.13% | R+25.1 | R |
| 54 | 36.66% | 60.93% | R+24.3 | 39.86% | 41.21% | R+1.3 | R |
| 55 | 8.36% | 90.17% | R+81.8 | 7.51% | 77.30% | R+69.8 | R |
| 56 | 8.26% | 89.97% | R+81.7 | 12.12% | 51.01% | R+38.9 | R |
| 57 | 8.06% | 90.22% | R+82.2 | 12.76% | 53.20% | R+40.4 | R |
| 58 | 9.98% | 88.32% | R+78.3 | 10.13% | 66.35% | R+56.2 | R |
| 59 | 10.79% | 87.00% | R+76.2 | 15.98% | 48.16% | R+32.2 | R |
| 60 | 10.30% | 87.22% | R+76.9 | 16.52% | 47.59% | R+31.1 | R |
| 61 | 13.38% | 84.32% | R+70.9 | 18.52% | 43.41% | R+24.9 | R |
| 62 | 13.30% | 85.02% | R+71.7 | 13.61% | 71.08% | R+57.5 | R |
| 63 | 11.11% | 86.48% | R+75.4 | 18.77% | 31.71% | R+12.9 | R |
| 64 | 14.96% | 81.98% | R+67 | 21.07% | 38.70% | R+17.6 | R |
| 65 | 9.38% | 88.79% | R+79.4 | 13.36% | 54.10% | R+40.7 | R |
| 66 | 8.98% | 89.30% | R+80.3 | 11.64% | 58.71% | R+47.1 | R |
| 67 | 9.57% | 88.60% | R+79 | 10.46% | 62.32% | R+51.9 | R |
| 68 | 15.24% | 82.39% | R+67.2 | 14.03% | 62.30% | R+48.3 | R |
| 69 | 26.06% | 71.16% | R+45.1 | 20.44% | 66.97% | R+46.5 | R |
| 70 | 15.90% | 81.72% | R+65.8 | 14.64% | 71.90% | R+57.3 | R |
| 71 | 14.57% | 83.10% | R+68.5 | 14.76% | 69.24% | R+54.5 | R |
| 72 | 13.87% | 83.89% | R+70 | 15.11% | 63.65% | R+48.5 | R |
| 73 | 24.42% | 73.56% | R+49.1 | 23.16% | 62.62% | R+39.5 | R |
| 74 | 17.87% | 80.76% | R+62.9 | 20.14% | 66.98% | R+46.8 | R |
| 75 | 13.77% | 84.32% | R+70.6 | 15.58% | 68.95% | R+53.4 | R |
| Total | 24.75% | 72.79% | R+48 | 27.46% | 45.54% | R+18.1 | - |
| Source: Daily Kos | |||||||
Recent news
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Utah State Courts, "An Overview of the Utah Supreme Court," accessed January 27, 2015
- ↑ Justice Durham announced she would retire from the bench in November 2017.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Utah," archived October 6, 2014
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Utah; Judicial Nominating Commissions," archived January 13, 2014
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
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Federal courts:
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Utah • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Utah
State courts:
Utah Supreme Court • Utah Court of Appeals • Utah District Courts • Utah Juvenile Courts • Utah Justice Courts
State resources:
Courts in Utah • Utah judicial elections • Judicial selection in Utah
