Parker wins Republican nomination for chief justice

Associate Justice Tom Parker took the lead in the primary election for Alabama Chief Justice, beating out colleague and incumbent Chief Justice Lyn Stuart in a close fight for the Republican nomination.

With 2145 of 2169 precincts reporting, Parker led with 51.9 percent of the votes compared to Stuart's 48.1, according to complete unofficial returns. 

On the November general election ballot against him will be Jefferson County Circuit Judge Bob Vance, the unopposed Democratic candidate that ran for, and nearly won, the job in 2012 against former Chief Justice Roy Moore.

Like Moore, Parker’s position is largely focused against social issues, like same-sex marriage and abortion. As chief justice, his hope is to work toward reversing Supreme Court decisions that have been passed through liberal courts, he said.

“I’m running for chief justice because we are at a pivotal point in America today," Parker said prior to the primary. "President Trump is just one appointment away from getting us a conservative majority on the Supreme Court, and they’re going to need cases they can use to reverse what the liberal majorities have done in the past. I’ve taken strong stands through my writings and have incurred strong attacks from the left because of that."

Elected to the Alabama Supreme Court in 2004 and re-elected in 2010, Parker also campaigned on the priority of increasing funding for the judicial system.

"The courts are a separate but equal branch of government, but they have not been funded as the Constitution requires," Parker said prior to the primary. 

His lobbying experience, he said, will assist in gaining those funds.

Like his opponent, Vance has campaigned on the need for increased funding, as well as rebuilding trust in state government, after the fall of three top officials in the state following misconduct or corruption scandals, including Moore.

“With all the corruption and scandal that’s been going on the past few years, I fear people are simply turned off of politics and the process we use to elect our representatives,” Vance said prior to the primary, adding that "Every elected official has a responsibility to recognize this is a problem, and we need to earn back that trust.”

Additionally, he hopes to boost investments in the drug and mental health courts.

Stuart's defeat continues one of the most unusual streaks in American politics. No Alabama Chief Justice has completed a full term in office in 23 years.

Melissa Brown contributed to this report.