Arizona Supreme Court Justice Gould eyes run for attorney general

Posted Mar 12, 2021

Jeremy Duda
Arizona Mirror

Jerod MacDonald-Evoy/Arizona MirrorIf Gould were to resign to run for attorney general, Gov. Doug Ducey would get to make a sixth appointment to the Arizona Supreme Court.
Azcourts.govArizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Gould.

Arizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Gould may try to make the jump from the state’s highest court to the Attorney General’s Office.

Gould, a Republican who has served on the Supreme Court for four years, is considering running for attorney general, several sources told the Arizona Mirror.

Lori Klein Corbin, Arizona’s Republican national committeewoman, said Gould spoke with her husband, former Attorney General Bob Corbin, about his interest in the race. She said Gould hasn’t decided yet whether he’ll run. Gould declined to comment to the Mirror or confirm his interest in the race.

Arizona’s rules of judicial conduct prohibit sitting judges and justices from running for office or campaigning for others, so Gould will have to step down from the Supreme Court if decides to run for attorney general.

If Gould were to resign to run for attorney general, Gov. Doug Ducey, would get to make a sixth appointment to the Arizona Supreme Court before leaving office in January 2023. Ducey’s five Supreme Court appointments is already a record for an Arizona governor.

Ducey appointed Gould to the bench in December 2016 after the legislature expanded the Supreme Court from five to seven seats. Gould served as a prosecutor in Maricopa and Yuma counties, and served as a Yuma County Superior Court judge for 10 years before former Gov. Jan Brewer appointed him to the Arizona Court of Appeals in 2011.

Attorney General Mark Brnovich won’t be able to run for re-election due to term limits, leaving an open race for the seat in 2022.

This report was first published by the Arizona Mirror.