The 2026 Washington Supreme Court election will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect five members of the Washington Supreme Court. It will be held concurrently with the 2026 US midterm election, as well as elections to the US House of Representatives, Washington State Senate and House, and various county and local offices. Primary elections will be held on August 4, 2026 using a top-two primary where all candidates are listed on the same ballot and the two candidates with the most votes advance to the general election.
There are three regular elections for the seats held by Justices Raquel Montoya-Lewis, Charles W. Johnson, and Debra Stephens. Justice Montoya-Lewis is not seeking re-election and Justice Johnson reached the mandatory retirement age making him ineligible to seek re-election. In addition, there will be two special elections to retain appointed Justices Colleen Melody and Theo Angelis to finish the terms of Justices Mary Yu and Barbara Madsen respectively. It is notable that there will be two open seats on the court and an additional two justices up for election for the first time.
In September of 2025, Justice Mary Yu, the first LGBTQ+ justice in Washington, announced she would retire in December triggering the special election to be held in November 2026. In November of 2025, Governor Bob Ferguson announced he would appoint Colleen Melody to serve in Justice Yu's position. The election will be for a two-year term with the next regular election for this position scheduled for 2028. Justice Melody has filed to run to retain the seat.
In January of 2026, Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis, the first Native American elected to a statewide office in Washington, announced she would not seek re-election to a second term. She will serve out the remainder of her term making this an open seat for the November election.
Justice Charles W. Johnson reached the mandatory retirement age of 75 and is therefore ineligible to seek re-election.
In February of 2026, Justice Barbra Madsen, the first woman to become a justice in Washington via election, announced she would retire effective April 3rd triggering the special election to be held in November 2026. In March, Governor Bob Ferguson announced he would appoint Theo Angelis to serve in Justice Madsen's position making him the first Washington justice of Middle Eastern descent. The election will be for a two-year term with the next regular election for this position scheduled for 2028. Soon-to-be Justice Angelis has declared he will run to retain the seat.
Chief Justice Debra Stephens is running for re-election.
These are candidates who have filed paperwork to run for supreme court justice, but have not yet specified which position they will be seeking