Democrats want to unseat Republicans on the Texas Supreme Court

By Mackenzie Grizzard | Staff writer

The fate of the Texas Supreme Court is more uncertain than ever as rumors swirl that 74-year-old Chief Justice Nathan Hect may retire after voters rejected a proposal to raise the mandatory retirement age for Supreme Court justices to 75 up to 79 years.

The Texas Supreme Court has a total of nine justices who hear civil cases, with three justices running for re-election with opposition. According to Ballotpedia, as of April 2024, all nine judges on the court identify with the Republican Party. The three justices Jimmy Blacklock, John Devine and Jane Bland face the opposition on November 5th.

According to the official Texas Court website, the Supreme Court of Texas is the state’s “court of last resort” for civil cases, and Texas is one of only two states with such a court.

The historically red Texas Supreme Court is fighting to maintain its conservative tradition at the ballot box next month, making this election particularly important for Texas Democrats.

In fourth place, Democrat Christine Vinh Weems wants to displace Republican incumbent John Devine. Weems is the acting judge of the 281st Civil District Court in Harris Country. For 4th place, the latest abortion rulings hang well over the red-blue battlefield.

In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Repeal Wade and thus revoke the current protection against abortion. This ruling strengthened the Texas Heartbeat Act, which included a “trigger law” that would ban abortions entirely if the U.S. Supreme Court overruled previous precedents on abortion.

John Devine has been a Texas Supreme Court justice since 2013 and has re-announced his candidacy despite being embroiled in a number of controversies.

“It is a great honor to serve the people of Texas and I look forward to doing so for another term,” Devine said in an official press release.

According to the Texas Tribune, in a leaked audio, Devine can be heard accusing his fellow judges of being “brainwashed.”

“My concern is that they are all bowing at the altar of progress rather than allegiance to the Constitution,” Devine said in the recording.

Given this controversy, Weems takes a contrary stance to the court’s ruling. In 2022, he issued a court order blocking the state of Texas from enforcing a 1925 abortion ban and allowing clinics to operate after the repeal of Roe v. Wade remained open for another two weeks.

“I have spent my career fighting to protect the rights of Texans,” Weems said in a social media post. “But right now our justice system is at stake.”

Recently, the Texas Supreme Court ruled in Zurawski v. Texas against several plaintiffs who sought clarification of Texas’ abortion ban in life-threatening cases of the mother or fetus. Judges Jimmy Blacklock, Jane Bland and John Devine, among others, were in court during the verdict. They each face a Democrat this November.

Bland, the Republican incumbent for Place 6, has served on the Texas Supreme Court since 2019 and was appointed by Gov. Gregg Abbott. She previously served as a judge on the Texas Court of Appeals from 2003 to 2018.

“Beyond the faithful application of the rule of law, I am working hard to improve access to justice for low-income people in Texas,” Bland said in an interview with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Democrat Bonnie Goldstein, who currently serves as a judge on the 5th District Court of Appeals, is running against Bland for Place 6. According to her website, Goldstein was admitted in 1990, giving her 34 years of legal experience.

“Ensuring access to justice, addressing juvenile justice issues and mental health issues – often overseen by the Texas Supreme Court – remain a priority for me and my judiciary,” Goldstein said in an email.

Blacklock was appointed by Gov. Gregg Abbott in 2018 and previously worked under the governor in the Attorney General’s Office, where he led several high-profile cases in the state of Texas.

“In every case, the Texas Supreme Court works hard to understand Texas law as it is, not as we would like it to be, and to apply Texas law fairly and equally to all parties before the Court,” Blacklock said in an interview with the Texas Tribune.

Blacklock faces opposition from Democratic candidate for Judge DaSean Jones for the No. 2 seat. Jones currently sits as a judge on the Texas District Court in Harris County.

“In Texas, the constitutional rights of citizens across the state are under attack by individuals who espouse far-right ideologies and engage in extremist actions to promote their beliefs,” Jones said in his official campaign statement.

The remaining Texas Supreme Court justices — Jeff Boyd, Debra Lehrmann, Brett Busby, Rebeca Aizpuru Huddle and Evan A. Young — will continue their six-year terms and are not up for re-election this year.