Republicans held two high-profile Georgia Supreme Court seats Tuesday, turning back Democratic challengers in races that drew national attention and heavyweight endorsements.
Justice Sarah Hawkins Warren defeated former state Sen. Jen Jordan, while Justice Charlie Bethel beat attorney Miracle Rankin, according to results from the statewide contests.
Justice Benjamin Land ran unopposed in the third Georgia Supreme Court race on the ballot.
Warren and Bethel were appointed by former Republican Gov. Nathan Deal. Both won re-election in 2020. Bethel’s last race was closer, when he prevailed with 52% of the vote.
Democrats tried to nationalize the contests with endorsements from former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris, even though Georgia judicial elections are formally nonpartisan.
Republicans also leaned in, including Gov. Brian Kemp, who warned that Democrats were trying to turn the court into another political battlefield.
“If you want people that will actually go up there and, you know, not try to interpret what the law is but follow the law and not try to make it, you should vote for our incumbent judges and justices that’s on the ballot,” Kemp told reporters at a campaign event for Senate candidate Derek Dooley on Thursday.
“It’s unfortunate the other side, backed by money that’s from outside of the state, is trying to make a nonpartisan race political. That’s not how our judiciary works in our state. And I would urge people to vote for the incumbents they have bipartisan support, from people that really understand how important it is to have a nonpartisan judiciary,” he added.
JUST IN: In a major victory, Republicans have WON both seats on the Georgia Supreme Court.
Charlie Bethel emerged victorious over his liberal opponent, Miracle Rankin, and Sarah Warren, beating state Sen. Jen Jordan
This happened despite heavy Democratic spending and… pic.twitter.com/Z7kxmH9pCJ
— The Patriot Oasis
(@ThePatriotOasis) May 20, 2026
The races unfolded as state supreme courts across the country increasingly become the final stop for issues pushed down from Washington. In Georgia, abortion has been one of the biggest flashpoints.
Bethel and Warren were part of the 2024 court majority that put Georgia’s six-week abortion law back into effect after a Fulton County judge had ruled it unconstitutional. Jordan, during her time in the state Senate, opposed the abortion ban when it cleared the General Assembly in 2019.
Beyond abortion, legal fights that once dominated federal courts, including environmental regulation disputes and new gerrymandering battles after a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, could land in state courts next.
On Monday, statements from Georgia’s Judicial Qualifications Commission were made public, saying Jordan and Rankin violated its rules of conduct by endorsing one another and running on the issue of restoring abortion rights to Georgia.
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The JQC said judicial candidates cannot make promises that commit them to positions on issues likely to come before the court.
Jordan responded that candidates like herself “must be allowed to communicate their views so that voters know who aligns with their values.” Rankin said the JQC’s complaint violates her First Amendment right to freedom of speech.
Warren and Bethel both voted to reinstate Georgia’s six-week abortion ban in 2024.
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