CHARLOTTE, N.C. — For the first time in 35 years, all five justices on the Supreme Court of South Carolina are all men. This caused a lot of discussion when the court reversed its course on abortion, upholding a strict six-week ban on most procedures.
WCNC Charlotte's Verify team examined supreme courts across the country to see if any other states have an all-male supreme court.
The Supreme Court is the highest court in South Carolina. It is composed of a chief justice and four associate justices. The South Carolina General Assembly elects each justice to a 10-year term. Right now, there are no women on the court. All five Justices are men.
THE QUESTION
Is South Carolina the only state with an all-male state supreme court?
THE ANSWER
Yes, South Carolina is the only state with an all-male supreme court.
OUR SOURCES
WHAT WE FOUND
Five Justices currently make up the South Carolina Supreme Court. To qualify for a seat on the Supreme Court, the South Carolina Judicial Branch says each justice must meet the following criteria:
- Be a U.S. citizen
- Between the ages of 32 and 72
- A resident of the state for at least five years
- A licensed attorney for at least eight years.
Research from the Brennan Center for Justice shows that men hold more than half of all the high court seats in the U.S. However, South Carolina is the only state with an all-male supreme court. Six states have just one woman on the bench. North Carolina, meanwhile, has two women serving on the Tar Heel State's highest court.
Digging further into the statistics, North Carolina and South Carolina each have one Black supreme court justice. There are 24 states with no Black justices.
Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
WCNC Charlotte's Verify series is all about trying to make a difference in the Carolinas by making sure the community has the correct information. WCNC Charlotte outlines concisely what we know and what we don't know. Sometimes the answer can be surprising. Watch previous stories where we verify social media claims in the YouTube playlist below and subscribe to get updated when new videos are uploaded.