John Arrowood

Judge Arrowood is running for reelection to the North Carolina Court of Appeals. When he was elected in 2018, he was the first openly LGBTQ+ person to win a statewide election in the South. Unfortunately, he remains the only out LGBTQ+ statewide elected official in the South.

Judge Arrowood is a North Carolina native, being born in rural Yancey County. He experienced what it was like to overcome tragedy early in his life when his parents both died, a couple months apart when he was only 15 years old. He went to Caldwell County to live with his 27-year-old brother, sister-in-law and 8-month-old niece, while he completed his education.

Judge Arrowood is a Magna Cum Laude, graduate of Catawba College, and received his Juris Doctor Degree from the University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill. He was the first in his family to receive a four-year college degree.

Judge Arrowood clerked for Judge (later Chief Judge) Gerald Arnold on the NC Court of Appeals and served as a staff attorney and head of the staff for the Court. In 1989, he moved to Charlotte to practice law at James, McElroy & Diehl P.A. where he became one of the first openly LGBTQ+ equity partners at major firm in the city. Judge Arrowood spent 26 years litigating complex commercial cases for individual and business plaintiffs & defendants where he received an AV rating from Martindale-Hubble. He was and accredited arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association and a certified mediator.

During his time in Charlotte, Judge Arrowood has been involved in the civic life of the community. He has served on the North Carolina Banking Commission, the North Carolina Rules Review Commission, the North Carolina Arts Council, the Mint Museum of Art, the Charlotte Choir School, the Charlotte Urban Ministry Center (now A Roof Above) a corporate Director for the North Carolina Railroad, the Vestry of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and Equality North Carolina.

Judge Arrowood currently serves on the LGBTQ+ Victory Action Board and has previously served on the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute Board. He has been a Victory Board Member since 2010 and was honored to be inducted into the Victory Institute Hall of Fame in 2024

He served as a Special Superior Court Judge, and in 2007, Governor Michael Easley appointed him to the Court of Appeals, when he was unsuccessful in retaining his seat, he returned to this former firm. In 2017, Governor Roy Cooper named Judge Arrowood back to a vacant seat on the Court and he was elected to a full term in 2018, where he received the most votes of anyone running in the 2018 statewide elections.

In previous elections, Judge Arrowood has been endorsed by both Advocates For Justice and the Association of Defense Attorneys. He has drafted over 650 opinions and sat on approximately 2000 cases during his service. The Court of Appeals, while an intermediate appellate court, is the court of last resort for at least 90 % of all appeals in North Carolina.