Current Georgia Justice Pinson Comes out on Top Against Former Democratic Representative Barrow

Incumbent Georgia Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson emerged victorious in a nonpartisan court race on Tuesday, defeating John Barrow who focused his campaign on abortion issues.

Decision Desk HQ declared Pinson as the winner with 56% of the vote, with 60% of precincts reporting. John Barrow, a former Democrat Representative from 2005 to 2015, received 44% of the vote.

Pinson, at 37, was appointed to the Georgia Supreme Court by Republican Governor Brian Kemp in 2022 and will now serve a six-year term.

Barrow, aged 69, aimed to be the first candidate to unseat a Georgia Supreme Court justice since 1922, as reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Barrow centered his campaign on supporting abortion rights, while Pinson emphasized the importance of maintaining impartiality in judicial decision-making. He cautioned against overly politicizing judicial campaigns.

Kemp and other conservatives stepped in to support Pinson in what became a heated race by Georgia’s judicial election standards. Barrow’s attempt to sue in federal court, claiming violation of free-speech rights by a state judicial agency, was unsuccessful. The agency warned Barrow that his assertion of Georgians’ right to abortion under the state constitution could breach judicial ethics.