This Election’s Surprising Bright Spot for Progressives Is a Very Big Deal

Frida Ghitis : The 2024 election marked a setback for Democratic hopes of rebalancing the federal judiciary.

She says it was a setback, but it was the one piece of the election where progressives flourished.

Ghitis says North Carolina's Allison Riggs , a Democrat , held down her seat against a Republican challenger, Jefferson Griffin .

She's now leading the tally heading into a recount in an extraordinarily close race for the North Carolina Supreme Court , she says.

Julian Zelizer : Republicans had a chance to flip a 43 -seat Supreme Court majority on the bench in November .

Zelizer says winning races in Michigan , Montana , Arkansas , Kentucky , Mississippi and Ohio also helped Democrats win judicial races.

He says a liberal majority on Montana 's high court will fight legislative assaults on women, LGBTQ+ people, the environment, and other GOP targets.

Writers: Republicans won three races for the Ohio Supreme Court .

Progressives failed to knock off conservative justices who faced retention elections in several purple states, including Arizona .

Abortion helped activate voters in a post-Roe landscape where state Supreme Courts have the final word on reproductive rights.