Davis County voters will see a retention question for Presiding Judge Ryan M. Harris of the Utah Court of Appeals on the Tuesday, Nov. 3, general election ballot. The ballot question asks voters whether to retain Harris, according to BallotReady election data.

Harris is one of several judges facing retention votes on the same ballot. The Bountiful-Farmington Record has also published profiles of Judge Jason Nelson, Judge Gregory Orme and Judge David Rawson.

Candidate information

  • Name: Ryan M. Harris
  • Office: Utah Court of Appeals judge
  • Race: Retain Harris? (nonpartisan)
  • Election: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, Utah General Election
  • Education: Bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University (1995); juris doctor from Stanford University (1998)

Experience and public service

Harris serves as presiding judge of the Utah Court of Appeals, according to his biography on the Utah Courts website.

After earning his law degree, Harris clerked for Judge Stephen H. Anderson on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in 1998. He then practiced as an attorney at Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough.

Harris served as a small claims judge in 2011, according to his Utah Courts biography. He also served as a Third District judge on the Utah District Court from 2011 to 2017, according to BallotReady. He joined the Utah Court of Appeals in 2017.

He has taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Utah, according to BallotReady.

Harris twice received the Judicial Excellence Award from the Litigation Section of the Utah State Bar while serving as a trial judge. He is a past chairperson of that section.

Endorsements

Harris has received one endorsement, according to BallotReady, which attributes the claim to the endorser:

  • Governing Group

This profile was compiled from the Utah Courts judicial biography and BallotReady election data.

The race appears on the Tuesday, Nov. 3, ballot as a nonpartisan retention question.