LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The race for chief justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court has ended with Karen Baker being declared as the winner.
Regardless of the winner, it will become the first time a woman will serve as chief justice for the state.
Baker currently leads the race with 52% of the votes with 95% of the precincts reporting as of 12:45 a.m.
The race moved to a runoff in November when Baker finished with 27% of the vote and Wood with 26% in the March primary elections.
The state's highest court made headlines this year with several rulings on proposed ballot measures that ultimately failed to make it in front of voters.
Those rulings would shape the race in the eyes of the public as it put Wood and Baker on opposite sides in multiple court rulings.
The rulings by the court meant that the abortion access proposal would be left off the ballot while any votes cast for the medical marijuana expansion would not count despite it appearing on ballots.
Both Baker and Wood will still serve on the court until their terms end regardless of the results of this race. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders will fill the vacancy this election creates on the court.
Sanders has previously said she is proud to build a conservative majority on the Arkansas Supreme Court.
We will update this more info and voting totals once they have been made available. For more election coverage in Arkansas, click here.
