The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. (West Virginia Legislative Photography)
In the May 12 primary election, voters will elect two justices to fill vacancies on the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. The race is nonpartisan.
Running in Division 2 are Judge Thomas H. Ewing and Del. Bill Flanigan, R-Ohio, to fill the court vacancy for Judge Beth Walker retired in June 2025.
Ewing served as a district judge in Fayette County for eight years before Gov. Patrick Morrisey appointed him to the Supreme Court to fill Walker’s vacancy. Former Gov. Jim Justice appointed him county judge in 2018 and he was elected to that role in 2020 and 2024.
Ewing said his experience as a district judge was invaluable as a novel judge and at times allowed him to better discuss the decisions district judges made with other judges.
Ewing said he could have stayed in the district court’s “comfort zone” without having to run a statewide race this year, but he wanted to have an impact on the entire state and not just his local community.
“For me, it’s an opportunity to serve at a higher level and make a greater impact,” he said. He also said his research and writing skills would be better suited to the job as a Supreme Court justice.
“I never imagined myself being a litigator or being in a courtroom,” Ewing said. “That’s not really what I wanted. I was more the person who was there to research and write.
During his tenure in Fayette County, Ewing headed the Adult Treatment Court and founded and directed the county’s Family Treatment Court, Teen Court and Truancy Diversion Program. says his biography.
While Ewing was appointed by Morrisey, he said that wouldn’t stop him from being fair and impartial, even if it meant issuing a decision the governor doesn’t like.
“I took an oath as a judge and now as a judge to uphold the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of West Virginia,” he said. “So my first and most important duty is to the rule of law. In my oath, I swore allegiance to no person, party or agenda. And so my role and actually my duty is to the rule of law.”
“I also have a second duty to uphold the independence and integrity of the judiciary,” he said. “So for me, my personal integrity is of utmost importance because if I don’t have personal integrity, how am I going to maintain the integrity of the judiciary?”
Flanigan, a Wheeling attorney, was first appointed to the House in 2016, a Republican representing Monongalia County. At the time, a cancer diagnosis prevented him from running for office.
His family then moved to Ohio County so his son could attend a program for students with dyslexia. Flanagin was elected to the House of Representatives in 2024 and currently represents Ohio County.
Flanigan said his experience drafting and debating legislation as a delegate and litigating legislation as an attorney showed him how laws are applied very differently across the state.
Flanigan describes himself as a constitutionalist. He said that as a lawmaker, he heard so many times that a bill was constitutional “until a judge said otherwise” that he decided he should be the one on the bench deciding whether something was unconstitutional.
He said the behind schedule Supreme Court Justices Tim Armstead and William Wooton separately suggested he consider running for the Supreme Court.
“So the next time it came, I looked at the two races and was really disappointed thinking that we could pull off another unopposed election in a state race,” Flanagin said. “And my wife and I were talking about it and she said, ‘You know, you’re not getting any younger. Why don’t you go and do it if you think this is something you want to do?’ So I took the lead and jumped in.”
As part of his campaign, Flanigan is traveling to every county in the state
“I believe all of our citizens deserve this,” he said. “They deserve someone who works that hard there. Yes, and I believe that I will and that I can.”
While Flanigan served as a Republican in the House, he said, as a judge he wouldn’t have a strenuous time being impartial, even if that meant disagreeing with people within his own party.
“If you look at my voting record, I’m not always going to support things just because the party said they want to do that,” he said. “I’ve looked at things, I would always try to be fair and impartial, even as a delegate. I want to make sure that all of our laws are applied equally to all citizens of the state. I think that’s something that’s very important to me and it’s a clear goal that I want to represent when I get in.”
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