Blacklock replaces Nathan Hecht, the longest serving justice on the high court. Gov. Greg Abbott also appointed his general counsel, James Sullivan, to the bench.

AUSTIN — Gov. Greg Abbott appointed Texas Supreme Court Justice Jimmy Blacklock to be the court’s chief justice and named James Sullivan as a justice Monday.

Abbott originally appointed Blacklock to the high court as the Place 2 justice in 2018. Blacklock previously worked for Abbott as the governor's general counsel.

The three-term Republican attorney general said the ruling validates his claim that his office was the target of "political retaliation."

Hecht is the longest-tenured Supreme Court justice in Texas history. He won six reelections and led the court as chief justice for more than a decade.