Court of Appeals Judge Pamela Goodwine has won a seat on the Kentucky Supreme Court where she will become the first Black female justice in the state’s history.

Court of Appeals Judge Pamela Goodwine is projected to win a seat onto the seven-member Kentucky Supreme Court, making history as the first Black woman elected to the state’s high court.

By Sarah Ladd Kentucky Lantern Judge Pamela Goodwine is no stranger to firsts — she was the first Black woman in Lexington to be district judge and, later, the first to be circuit judge. She became the first Black woman to serve on the Kentucky Court of Appeals after being elected in 2018.

LEXINGTON Judge Pamela Goodwine is no stranger to firsts — she was the first Black woman in Lexington to be district judge and, later, the first to be circuit judge.

No one has been executed in Kentucky since 2008 when Marco Allen Chapman was given a lethal injection for killing two Gallatin County children and injuring their mother and sister.

LEX 18 has been following the race, and now the results are in. Kentucky Court of Appeals Judge Pamela Goodwine is heading to Frankfort to claim a seat on the Kentucky Supreme Court.

The 5th Supreme Court District's seat opened up after Chief Justice Laurance VanMeter announced in 2023 he would not seek reelection.