Robert H. Edmunds Jr.

Robert H. Edmunds Jr.
Robert H. Edmunds Jr.
Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court
	In office; January 1, 2001 – January 1, 2017
Preceded by	Franklin Freeman
Succeeded by	Michael Morgan
Judge of the North Carolina Court of Appeals
	In office; January 1, 1999 – January 1, 2001
Preceded by	Clarence Horton Jr.
United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina
	In office; December 1986 – April 1993
President	Ronald Reagan; George H. W. Bush; Bill Clinton;
Preceded by	Kenneth W. McAllister
Succeeded by	Benjamin H. White Jr.
Personal details
Born	Robert Holt Edmunds Jr.; April 17, 1949 (age 75); Danville, Virginia, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Education	Vassar College (BA); University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (JD); University of Virginia (LLM);

Robert Holt Edmunds Jr. (born April 17, 1949) is an American lawyer, formerly an associate justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court.

Early life and education

Born in Danville, Virginia, Edmunds moved to Greensboro, North Carolina at the age of 8. He attended Woodberry Forest School and Williams College before graduating with honors from Vassar College with a degree in English.^[1] Edmunds earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1975, after which he served two years in the United States Navy.^[2] He was awarded an LL.M. degree (Master of Laws in the Judicial Process) from the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville in 2004.^[3]

Career

After working as a district attorney in Guilford County, North Carolina and as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina, Edmunds served as the presidentially-appointed United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina from 1986 to 1993.^[4] In 1993, Edmunds entered private practice, joining the firm Stern & Klepfer.^[5] In 1996, he ran for North Carolina Attorney General but lost to Mike Easley.^[6] He was elected to the North Carolina Court of Appeals in 1998 as a Republican.^[7] In 2000, he was elected to the North Carolina Supreme Court, defeating Franklin Freeman.^[8] He was elected as a Republican, though the office became nonpartisan.^[9]

Justice Edmunds won a second term to the North Carolina Supreme Court by defeating Wake Forest University law professor Suzanne Reynolds in the 2008 elections.^[10] In 2016 when running for a third term he was defeated by Michael Morgan.^[11]

Electoral history

2016

North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice (Edmunds seat) primary election, 2016^[12]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Edmunds Jr. (incumbent)	235,405	48.01%
	Nonpartisan	Michael Morgan	168,498	34.36%
	Nonpartisan	Sabra Jean Faires	59,040	12.04%
	Nonpartisan	Daniel Robertson	27,401	5.59%
Total votes			490,344	100%

North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice (Edmunds seat) general election, 2016^[13]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Michael Morgan	2,157,927	54.47%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Edmunds Jr. (incumbent)	1,803,425	45.53%
Total votes			3,961,352	100%

2008

North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice (Edmunds seat) election, 2008^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Edmunds Jr. (incumbent)	1,577,419	51.00%
	Nonpartisan	Suzanne Reynolds	1,515,345	49.00%
Total votes			3,092,764	100%

2000

North Carolina Supreme Court Associate Justice (Freeman seat) election, 2000^[15]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Robert Edmunds Jr.	1,436,510	51.95%
	Democratic	Franklin Freeman (incumbent)	1,328,623	48.05%
Total votes			2,765,133	100%
	Republican gain from Democratic

1998

1998 North Carolina Court of Appeals (Horton Seat) election, 1998^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Robert Edmunds Jr.	949,110	51.59%
	Democratic	Clarence Horton Jr. (incumbent)	890,533	48.41%
Total votes			1,839,643	100%
	Republican gain from Democratic

1996

1996 North Carolina Attorney General election^[17]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Mike Easley (incumbent)	1,453,196	59.07%
	Republican	Robert Edmunds Jr.	1,007,027	40.93%
Total votes			2,460,223	100%
	Democratic hold

References

^ "Robert Holt Edmunds Jr". nccourts.org. North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts. Archived from the original on 2015-04-16. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
^ "Robert Holt Edmunds Jr". nccourts.org. North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts. Archived from the original on 2015-04-16. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
^ "Alumni in the News, 2008 - June 2009". www.law.virginia.edu. University of Virginia School of Law. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
^ Edmunds, Robert (Summer 2014). "An Interview with Justice Randy Holland". The Judges' Journal. 53 (3). Retrieved 16 April 2015.
^ Hibbard, David (25 October 2007). "N.C. Supreme Court Justice Edmonds visits law school". elon.edu. Elon University. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
^ "Attorney General Abstract of Votes Cast in the General Election held on November 5, 1996" (PDF). ncsbe.gov. North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved 16 April 2015.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ O'Brien, John (5 November 2008). "GOP keeps majority on N.C. Supreme Court". www.legalnewsline.com. Legal Newsline. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
^ "Assoc Justtice NC Supreme Court" (PDF). ncsbe.gov. North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved 16 April 2015.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ "Bob Edmunds | newsobserver.com projects". Archived from the original on 2008-10-19. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
^ Galindo, Dan. "Reynolds just shy of seat on high court in late count". Winston-Salem Journal. Kevin Kampman. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
^ Morgan defeats Edmunds in N.C Supreme Court race
^ "06/07/2016 Official Primary Election Results - Statewide". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
^ "11/08/2016 Official General Election Results - Statewide". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
^ "11/04/2008 Official General Election Results - Statewide". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
^ "NC - Asc Justice of Sup Ct". Our Campaigns. April 18, 2023. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
^ "1998 General Election" (PDF). North Carolina State Board of Elections. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-11-26. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
^ "Attorney General". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on 26 November 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

Party political offices
Preceded by Bob Crumley	Republican nominee for Attorney General of North Carolina 1996	Succeeded by Dan Boyce
Legal offices
Preceded by Clarence Horton Jr.	Judge of the North Carolina Court of Appeals 1999–2001	Succeeded by
Preceded by Franklin Freeman	Associate Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court 2001–2017	Succeeded by Michael Morgan

[1] "Robert Holt Edmunds Jr". nccourts.org. North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts. Archived from the original on 2015-04-16. Retrieved 16 April 2015.

[2] "Robert Holt Edmunds Jr". nccourts.org. North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts. Archived from the original on 2015-04-16. Retrieved 16 April 2015.

[3] "Alumni in the News, 2008 - June 2009". www.law.virginia.edu. University of Virginia School of Law. Retrieved 16 April 2015.

[4] Edmunds, Robert (Summer 2014). "An Interview with Justice Randy Holland". The Judges' Journal. 53 (3). Retrieved 16 April 2015.

[5] Hibbard, David (25 October 2007). "N.C. Supreme Court Justice Edmonds visits law school". elon.edu. Elon University. Retrieved 16 April 2015.

[6] "Attorney General Abstract of Votes Cast in the General Election held on November 5, 1996" (PDF). ncsbe.gov. North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved 16 April 2015.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[7] O'Brien, John (5 November 2008). "GOP keeps majority on N.C. Supreme Court". www.legalnewsline.com. Legal Newsline. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.

[8] "Assoc Justtice NC Supreme Court" (PDF). ncsbe.gov. North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved 16 April 2015.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[9] "Bob Edmunds | newsobserver.com projects". Archived from the original on 2008-10-19. Retrieved 2007-12-10.

[10] Galindo, Dan. "Reynolds just shy of seat on high court in late count". Winston-Salem Journal. Kevin Kampman. Retrieved 9 April 2015.

[11] Morgan defeats Edmunds in N.C Supreme Court race

[12] "06/07/2016 Official Primary Election Results - Statewide". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[13] "11/08/2016 Official General Election Results - Statewide". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[14] "11/04/2008 Official General Election Results - Statewide". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[15] "NC - Asc Justice of Sup Ct". Our Campaigns. April 18, 2023. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[16] "1998 General Election" (PDF). North Carolina State Board of Elections. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-11-26. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[17] "Attorney General". North Carolina State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on 26 November 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2024.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]