Arkansas Supreme Court Justice Courtney Hudson is projected to be the state high court’s next Position 2 justice, according to The Associated Press.
Hudson, currently serving as Position 3 justice, will succeed Justice Robin Wynne of Fordyce, a former Arkansas Court of Appeals judge, who died in June at age 70. He died six months into his second term as the Position 2 justice, which he had won after a run-off.
She defeated Circuit Judge Carlton Jones, 62, of Texarkana, has served as judge of the Eighth South Judicial Circuit of Lafayette and Miller counties since he was elected to that post in 2014.
A gubernatorial appointee, Cody Hiland, has held the post since July. It pays $187,961 annually.
The Supreme Court has seven justices who serve eight-year terms.
Hudson, 52, of Fayetteville, is a 12-year veteran of the state’s highest court and one of its longest-serving members.
She first took the bench in 2008 as an Arkansas Court of Appeals judge representing Washington, Benton, Johnson, Franklin, Madison, Carroll, and Crawford counties. Hudson unsuccessfully ran for chief justice in 2016.
Hudson is a graduate of the University of Arkansas and the University of Arkansas School of Law. She was the youngest justice ever elected at age 38 and the first woman to win a contested race for justice.
When Hudson announced her intentions to pursue the Position 2 seat, she was three years into her second Position 3 term. She said previously that she was interested in the Position 2 seat because it would allow her to serve a few more years on the court before reaching 70, the age when circuit and higher judges are generally required to leave the bench or forfeit retirement benefits.