Two races decided, one to go. As of 10:19 p.m.:
Chief Justice Barbara Madsen (unopposed) and Justice Jim Johnson (running against Stan Rumbaugh) have won their races and will advance to the general election without an opponent.
Meanwhile, Justice Richard Sanders and Charlie Wiggins are both under the 50 percent vote threshold required to advance unopposed, with Sanders enjoying an 8-point lead. Judge Bryan Chushcoff trails with only 12 percent of the vote.
Charlie Wiggins earned a BA from Princeton University, an MBA from the University of Hawaii, and his JD from Duke Law School. After becoming a lawyer, he went into private practice. During his 33 years of practice, Wiggins has served as a Court of Appeals judge and as a pro tem judge in King and Jefferson counties. He is also past chair of the WSBA Disciplinary Board and Court Rules Committee, and past president of Washington Chapter of American Judicature Society.
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Newspaper endorsements are coming in fast now.
In the last week, Justice Jim Johnson has been endorsed for re-election by the Seattle Times, the Olympian, the Tri-City Herald, and the Yakima Herald.
Justice Richard Sanders has been endorsed by the Spokesman-Review.
Sanders’ opponent Charlie Wiggins has been endorsed by the Tri-City Herald and the Yakima Herald.
More newspaper endorsements were released this morning. The Columbian endorses both Supreme Court incumbents Justice Jim Johnson and Justice Richard Sanders over their opponents.
Johnson has been a consistent protector of open government in his six years on the court and has earned the people’s confidence by defending our state’s superb primary system. He has a big advantage in experience; Rumbaugh has never served as a judge and is too closely tied to labor unions.
Sanders is another incumbent who has earned re-election, despite his maverick tendencies. He has both angered and drawn endorsements from Republicans and Democrats, proving his independence. He has served on the court since 1995. Controversial but brilliant and articulate, Sanders’ disregard for partisan influences, and his fierce defense of individual rights makes him a good fit for the court.
The Spokesman-Review also endorses Sanders. "We don’t always agree with him, but we know he is taking a principled stand."
Meanwhile, the Herald endorsed Johnson, but wants to see Sanders and challenger Charlie Wiggins advance to the general election for a more detailed debate.
We'd like to see the libertarian Sanders, a controversial but valuable member of the court, engage in a spirited contest with his strongest challenger, who we believe to be Bainbridge Island attorney Charlie Wiggins. An enlightening debate could ensue, spotlighting issues such as the rights of crime victims vs. the rights of the accused.
The Washington State Association for Justice recorded a debate between Washington State Supreme Court Justice Sanders and attorney Charlie Wiggins. The debate is in five parts so click "continue reading" to see the remaining videos.
With candidate filing week over, we now have a complete picture of this year’s races for seats on the Supreme Court of Washington.
Running for Position 1 are Justice Jim Johnson and challenger Stan Rumbaugh. Chief Justice Barbara Madsen is running unchallenged for Position 5. We previously reported that Justice Richard Sanders and Charlie Wiggins are running for Position 6, and another candidate has jumped into this race: Pierce County Superior Court Judge Bryan Chushcoff.
Because judicial offices are nonpartisan, the August 19 primary is a key date for judicial elections. If any candidate receives 50 percent of the primary vote, that candidate advances unchallenged to the general election.
Here at the Supreme Court of Washington Blog we will be reporting on each of these contested judicial races. Voting for judges is often difficult as candidates refrain from taking positions on specific public policy issues. The Supreme Court of Washington Blog will not endorse any candidate; our goal is to provide information about each candidate’s background, qualifications, and previous rulings (if available).
Just click on the “Judicial Elections” category to the left to read each article we’ve written about the various judicial races. You can also sort articles by individual candidate using the tags below.
The Supreme Court will issue opinions in two cases tomorrow.
American Best Food, Inc., et al. v. Alea London, LTD., No. 80753-1 (briefs and argument). The issue here, as summarized by TVW, is whether an insurer must defend its insured in a case involving its negligence that occurred after an assault when the contract excludes coverage for injuries “arising out of” assaults?)
Columbia Physical Therapy v. Benton Franklin Orthopedic Associates, No. 81734-1 (briefs and argument). Columbia sued Benton on several grounds, all related to whether a physician-owned company providing orthopedic services can employ physical therapists. Both parties agree on the facts of the case, but differ on the applicable laws and cases. The trial court issued summary judgment on some of the issues and certified them to the Court of Appeals, and the parties asked for discretionary review. The Court refused the review, stating that the parties disagreed on what issues they wanted the Court to review.
The parties appeal to the Supreme Court, arguing that the denial of review departed so far from the "accepted and usual course of judicial proceedings as to call for the exercise of revisory jurisdiction" by the high court.
(Supreme Court judicial candidate Charlie Wiggins represented and argued for Columbia Physical Therapy.)
The Washington Supreme Court will consider new petitions for review on Tuesday, and may issue opinions on Thursday. No arguments are scheduled this week.
In other news, Supreme Court hopeful Charlie Wiggins in now on Twitter.
Steve Miletich of the Seattle Times has an article about the campaign between Justice Richard Sanders and attorney Charlie Wiggins.
As we reported last week, attorney Charlie Wiggins announced his candidacy for Position 6 of the Washington Supreme Court, currently held by Justice Richard Sanders.
Justice Sanders was expected to run for another term on the court, and he recently filed the necessary candidate registration form with the Public Disclosure Commission. Justice Sanders won a special election in 1995 and was re-elected for two six-year terms in 1998 and 2004. He describes his understanding of the job on his campaign website:
These have been good years on the court. It is a great privilege and joy to attempt to protect and maintain the individual legal rights of every single individual who comes to court. That, in my opinion, is the job description of a judge, and, as it says in Article 1, Section 1 of our state constitution, the purpose of state government as well.
Stay tuned. We'll continue to bring news and information about the various candidates for the Supreme Court.
We have our first challenger in a state Supreme Court race.
Bainbridge Island attorney Charlie Wiggins has officially thrown his hat into the ring, filing a candidate registration form with the Public Disclosure Commission. He is running against Justice Richard Sanders.
Wiggins’ campaign website can be found here, where Wiggins states he is running against Sanders because of violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct and because "his decisions are not fair and impartial, and he opposes positive reforms to improve the process of electing judges." Should be a colorful campaign.
Chief Justice Barbara Madsen and Justice James Johnson are also up for re-election this year.
As election season approaches, this blog will provide information about candidates for the Supreme Court, including links to the evaluations and endorsements of other organizations.
UPDATE: The race is covered by the Olympian, Seattlepi.com, and the Kitsap Sun.
Note: The Supreme Court of Washington Blog neither endorses nor supports any candidate for judicial office.
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