North Dakota Supreme Court’s First Female Chief Justice

(Photo by Jacob Orledge/North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) –  The North Dakota Supreme Court passed the gavel to a female chief justice for the first time in state history.

Justice Jon Jensen formally stepped down from the role and welcomed Chief Justice Lisa Fair McEvers during a ceremony in front of a packed crowd.

“Women have been eligible to serve on this court since 1920, when women gained the full right to vote, and it took us until now to have a chief justice,” Fair McEvers said during a speech. “While I’m humbled to be the first, I certainly hope that I won’t be the last.”

Fair McEvers earned 83% of the votes cast by sitting justices and district court judges in the December election to determine who would succeed Jensen. Justice Jerod Tufte was the other candidate.