Jill Pohlman faces Utah Supreme Court retention vote

What voters will decide

Utah Supreme Court Justice Jill Pohlman is standing for retention on Nov. 3, 2026, as her term approaches its Jan. 3, 2027, expiration. She must receive a majority of the vote to remain on the court.

Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican who appointed Pohlman in 2022, has supported voting against her retention. Cox said retention elections are the proper way for voters to respond when they disagree with Supreme Court decisions. Utah Republican Party Chair Robert Axon also urged delegates at the party’s April 28 convention to oppose Pohlman’s retention.

Utah State Bar Executive Director Elizabeth Wright argued that judges must apply the law even when their decisions are unpopular and that disagreement with a ruling should not be the basis for removing them.

Redistricting decisions shape the debate

The opposition follows two redistricting cases. In 2024, the Utah Supreme Court unanimously ruled in a case involving a voter-approved redistricting reform and direct democracy. In 2025, the court allowed a lower-court decision striking down Utah’s congressional map to stand.

Cox signed legislation Jan. 31, 2026, expanding the Supreme Court from five justices to seven. Another justice initially scheduled for a 2026 retention vote, Diana Hagen, resigned in May after lawmakers announced an independent investigation into previously dismissed allegations involving a redistricting attorney who had argued before the court.

Campaign and retention rules

Utah allows a justice to campaign when facing actively organized opposition. As of October 2026, Pohlman had not created a campaign or released statements about the retention vote.

No Utah Supreme Court justice lost a retention election in the 17 elections analyzed by Ballotpedia since 1990. That history does not determine the outcome of Pohlman’s vote.