Utah voters retain Supreme Court Justice Jill Pohlman with 77.6% of the vote
Pohlman keeps her seat for another 10-year term after some Republicans campaigned against her retention.
The vote
Utah voters retained Associate Chief Justice Jill Pohlman of the Utah Supreme Court on Tuesday. Unofficial statewide results posted at 1:42 a.m. Wednesday showed 486,231 yes votes, or 77.56%, and 140,675 no votes, or 22.44%. [1] The vote gives her another 10-year term. [2]
Judges of the Utah Court of Appeals on the statewide ballot were also retained, each with between about 73% and 80% yes votes in the same results. [1]
The Salt Lake Tribune reported that 55 other judges on ballots around the state also won retention in early returns. One, Weber County Justice Court Judge Trent Nelson, was trailing 55% to 45%. [2]
Results are unofficial. County clerks are still counting mail ballots that arrived on Election Day, and counties have until the canvass two weeks after the election to certify final totals.
Why this year's race drew attention
Retention elections are usually quiet. This year, some Republicans campaigned against Pohlman after a series of court decisions they disagreed with, the Tribune reported. [2]
Those included the Supreme Court's decision blocking the Legislature's attempt to repeal the voter-approved anti-gerrymandering initiative, which led to the court-chosen congressional map, and the court's decision upholding a lower-court order that blocks a near-total abortion ban. Rep. Burgess Owens urged voters on X to vote no on Pohlman, and the Utah Eagle Forum also campaigned against her retention. [2]
The Legislature has also made major changes to the courts, including expanding the Utah Supreme Court from five justices to seven, the first expansion in more than a century, and creating a new three-judge panel to hear challenges to state laws. A challenge to that panel was argued before the expanded Supreme Court last month, and the court has not yet ruled. [2]
Pohlman was the only justice on the ballot this year. Justice Diana Hagen resigned earlier amid a Republican-led investigation; the Judicial Conduct Commission had dismissed a complaint against her after a preliminary review, calling the allegations "misleading," the Tribune reported. [2]
Sources
- Utah Lt. Governor's Office: unofficial 2026 general election results, as of 1:42 a.m. Nov. 4, 2026 electionresults.utah.gov
- Salt Lake Tribune: Utah voters decide the fate of dozens of judges, Nov. 3, 2026 sltrib.com
This story was written by AI from the report by Utah Lt. Governor's Office, which has the full story. How we write stories.