Supreme Court of North Carolina
North Carolina's highest court; seven justices chosen in partisan elections for eight-year terms.
Justice Anita Earls defends her seat on North Carolina's highest court on 3 November 2026. The bench's 2025 stand against overseas voters WHO never lived in the state found a federal echo when the Pentagon cut their option from its forms in August.
Last refreshed: 1 October 2026
Timeline for Supreme Court of North Carolina
Mentioned in: Pentagon cuts a box from overseas forms
US Midterms 2026Mentioned in: Florida locks its map for November
US Midterms 2026Background
North Carolina's Supreme Court has seven justices, a chief justice and six associates, each chosen in a partisan statewide race for an eight-year term. That makes the Court itself a prize in state elections; Earls, a Democrat, faces Republican Sarah Stevens in 2026.
The bench was the main battleground of the 2024 contest for its own Seat 6. Republican Jefferson Griffin challenged thousands of ballots, among them some cast by overseas citizens WHO had never lived in North Carolina. the Court paused certification on 7 January 2025 and in April 2025 backed the part of his challenge aimed at never-resident voters. Chief US District Judge Richard Myers then ordered the State Board of Elections on 5 May 2025 to certify Democrat Allison Riggs as the winner by 734 votes, and Griffin conceded two days later.
NPR lists North Carolina as the one state where Republican suits against never-resident voting have succeeded. The never-resident question has since moved to federal paperwork: the Pentagon's Federal Voting Assistance Program removed that checkbox from two overseas forms in late August 2026. the Court had no part in that decision.