Washington judicial elections, 2015
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Washington's 2015 elections School boards • Municipal • Judicial • Candidate ballot access |
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The state of Washington held scheduled judicial elections for 14 seats on November 3, 2015. The filing deadline for 2015 candidates was May 15, 2015. The primary election scheduled for August 4, 2015, was cancelled due to a lack of contested races. Stephen E. Brown sought re-election to Grays Harbor County Superior Court against challenger Jean Cotton. Incumbents faced no opposition in the remaining 13 seats including a seat in Division 1 of the Washington Court of Appeals.
In accordance with the election rules explained below, many of the unopposed superior court candidates did not appear on the ballot. Of the unopposed superior court judges, only Alex Ekstrom and Daniel L. Goodell were on the ballot. The rest were elected automatically.[1]
Election dates
- Filing deadline: May 15, 2015
- Primary: August 4, 2015
- General: November 3, 2015
Candidates: Contested
Grays Harbor Superior Court
| General election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Stephen E. Brown Incumbent |
68.3% | 8,408 |
| Jean Cotton | 31.7% | 3,894 |
| Total Votes | 12,302 | |
Candidates: Uncontested
- James Verellen (Incumbent) - Court of Appeals - Division 1
- Alex Ekstrom (Incumbent) - Benton/Franklin Superior Court
- Derek J. Vanderwood (Incumbent) - Clark Superior Court - Position 3
- John Fairgrieve (Incumbent) - Clark Superior Court - Position 6
- Janet Helson (Incumbent) - King Superior Court - Position 7
- Sam Chung (Incumbent) - King Superioir Court - Position 15
- Veronica Galván (Incumbent) - King Superior Court - Position 21
- Daniel L. Goodell (Incumbent) - Mason Superior Court
- G. Helen Whitener (Incumbent) - Pierce Superior Court - Position 11
- Gretchen Leanderson (Incumbent) - Pierce Superior Court - Position 15
- Raymond F. Clary (Incumbent) - Spokane Superior Court
- Mary Sue Wilson (Incumbent) - Thurston Superior Court
- Raquel Montoya-Lewis (Incumbent) - Whatcom Superior Court
Process
Judges in Washington participate in nonpartisan elections. Elections may be held in both odd and even-numbered years. However, no elections to fill vacancies on the district courts may be held in odd-numbered years.[3]
Primary election
Nonpartisan primaries are held only if more than two candidates file for a position.[4] The two candidates who receive the greatest number of votes in the primary advance to the general election. If a candidate wins over 50 percent of the vote in the primary, she or he is unopposed in the general election.[5][6]
General election
In counties with a population that is greater than 100,000, if only one superior court candidate files for election for a judgeship, that candidate is automatically elected and the county does not hold a general election for the seat.[3] According to the 2010 census, the following counties have a population greater than 100,000:[7]
State profile
| Demographic data for Washington | ||
|---|---|---|
| Washington | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 7,160,290 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 66,456 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 77.8% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 3.6% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 7.7% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 1.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.6% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 5.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 12% | 17.1% |
| Bildung | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 90.4% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 32.9% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $61,062 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 14.4% | 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 Washington. **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 Washington
Washington voted for the Democratic candidate in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Washington, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[8]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Washington had four Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 2.21 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.
More Washington coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Washington
- United States congressional delegations from Washington
- Public policy in Washington
- Endorsers in Washington
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- More...
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Washington judge elections 2015. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Voters' Guide: 2015 General Election," accessed October 7, 2015
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Candidates Who Have Filed," accessed May 18, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Washington Secretary of State, "Judicial Elections in Washington State," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Washington State Legislature, "RCW 29A.52.220," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Washington State Legislature, "RCW 29A.36.170," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Washington Courts, "Judicial Election Information," July 13, 2012, accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Washington: Annual Estimates of the Resident Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2013," accessed July 24, 2014
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
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