On Tuesday night, Sarah Stewart, a sitting associate justice on the Alabama Supreme Court, won the race to replace Tom Parker, who is legally under the age limit to become a judge. .

Stewart secured more than 60% of the votes cast against his opponent, Brian Taylor. Taylor, a former Alabama state senator and general counsel to several Alabama governors, promoted a conservative judicial message in his first statewide judicial bid.

Stewart, who was first elected to the Supreme Court in 2018, previously served as a circuit judge in Mobile for 13 years.

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“I am very grateful to the people of Alabama for trusting in me as the Republican nominee for chief justice,” Stewart said after the vote count.

“I think we all have a lot of exciting times ahead of us. Of course, we have an election campaign in November that will give us a real sense of the strength of our party in our state. We're really pleased that we have the trust of the state's judges, district attorneys, and sheriffs who use the system on a daily basis.In fact, that's the chief's responsibility as steward of the court system. .”

The Alabama Supreme Court's ruling that embryos created through in vitro fertilization constitute persons constituted a heightened profile around the race, leading to reactions from health care providers and families in Alabama and across the country. Taylor criticized Stewart throughout the race, called May she recuse herself from the judgment.

Stewart will face Greg Griffin in the November 5, 2024 general election.

Grayson Everett is the state and politics editor for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @Grayson270