Sanders
Chambers
OLYMPIA, Wash. (Legal Newsline) - Former Washington Supreme Court Justice Richard Sanders still has a chance to return to the state's high court.
Sanders, who served on the Court from 1995 to 2010, will face Seattle attorney Sheryl Gordon McCloud in the November general election.
McCloud received a majority of the votes in last week's primary -- 321,108 or 29.03 percent -- according to the most recent results on the Secretary of State's website.
Sanders received slightly less, with 314,901 votes or 28.47 percent.
Both edged out King County Superior Court Judge Bruce Hilyer, who conceded last week he wouldn't be able to finish second.
"It has been a great honor and privilege to be a superior court judge these past twelve years," Hilyer told The Associated Press in an emailed statement.
"I am proud of the campaign we ran and am grateful to all of my supporters, and I respect the choices made by the voters. I'm taking some time to rest and reflect on my next challenge."
According to the most recent results -- last updated Tuesday afternoon -- Hilyer received 302,142 votes or 27.32 percent.
He was up for reelection this year but instead decided to run for the Supreme Court.
Sanders and McCloud will face each other for the seat being vacated by retiring Justice Tom Chambers.
Chambers announced in January he wouldn't be seeking reelection. Soon after his announcement, he had surgery for another bout of cancer -- this time in his mouth.
Sanders, who was elected in 1995 to a partial term to fill a vacancy on the state's high court, was reelected to three full six-year terms in 1998 and 2004.
He ran for reelection again in 2010, but lost to attorney Charlie Wiggins by just 13,000 votes.
Also in the Aug. 7 primary, incumbent Justice Steve Gonzalez easily bested his opponent, Bruce O. Danielson. Gonzalez received 644,745 votes or 60.01 percent.
Incumbent Justice Susan Owens did just as well at the polls, beating out both Douglas W. McQuaid and Scott Stafne with 689,722 votes or 63.42 percent.
From Legal Newsline: Reach Jessica Karmasek by email at jessica@legalnewsline.com.