diff --git a/client/client.go b/client/client.go
index c1ff41ece..340edba21 100644
--- a/client/client.go
+++ b/client/client.go
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ import (
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strconv"
 	"sync"
+	"sync/atomic"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/armon/go-metrics"
@@ -111,6 +112,13 @@ type Client struct {
 
 	connPool *nomad.ConnPool
 
+	// lastHeartbeatFromQuorum is an atomic int32 acting as a bool.  When
+	// true, the last heartbeat message had a leader.  When false (0),
+	// the last heartbeat did not include the RPC address of the leader,
+	// indicating that the server is in the minority or middle of an
+	// election.
+	lastHeartbeatFromQuorum int32
+
 	lastHeartbeat time.Time
 	heartbeatTTL  time.Duration
 	heartbeatLock sync.Mutex
@@ -361,6 +369,8 @@ func (c *Client) Stats() map[string]map[string]string {
 	numAllocs := len(c.allocs)
 	c.allocLock.RUnlock()
 
+	c.heartbeatLock.Lock()
+	defer c.heartbeatLock.Unlock()
 	stats := map[string]map[string]string{
 		"client": map[string]string{
 			"node_id":         c.Node().ID,
@@ -924,8 +934,20 @@ func (c *Client) updateNodeStatus() error {
 	if err := c.rpcProxy.RefreshServerLists(resp.Servers, resp.NumNodes, resp.LeaderRPCAddr); err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
-	c.consulPullHeartbeatDeadline = time.Now().Add(2 * resp.HeartbeatTTL)
 
+	// Begin polling Consul if there is no Nomad leader.  We could be
+	// heartbeating to a Nomad server that is in the minority of a
+	// partition of the Nomad server quorum, but this Nomad Agent still
+	// has connectivity to the existing majority of Nomad Servers, but
+	// only if it queries Consul.
+	if resp.LeaderRPCAddr == "" {
+		atomic.CompareAndSwapInt32(&c.lastHeartbeatFromQuorum, 1, 0)
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	const heartbeatFallbackFactor = 3
+	atomic.CompareAndSwapInt32(&c.lastHeartbeatFromQuorum, 0, 1)
+	c.consulPullHeartbeatDeadline = time.Now().Add(heartbeatFallbackFactor * resp.HeartbeatTTL)
 	return nil
 }
 
@@ -1249,20 +1271,29 @@ func (c *Client) setupConsulSyncer() error {
 	bootstrapFn := func() error {
 		now := time.Now()
 		c.configLock.RLock()
-		if now.Before(c.consulPullHeartbeatDeadline) {
+
+		// If the last heartbeat didn't contain a leader, give the
+		// Nomad server this Agent is talking to one more attempt at
+		// providing a heartbeat that does contain a leader.
+		if atomic.LoadInt32(&c.lastHeartbeatFromQuorum) == 1 && now.Before(c.consulPullHeartbeatDeadline) {
 			c.configLock.RUnlock()
 			return nil
 		}
 		c.configLock.RUnlock()
+		c.logger.Printf("[TRACE] client.consul: lost heartbeat with Nomad quorum, falling back to Consul for server list")
 
 		nomadServerServiceName := c.config.ConsulConfig.ServerServiceName
 		services, _, err := c.consulSyncer.ConsulClient().Catalog().
 			Service(nomadServerServiceName, consul.ServiceTagRpc,
 				&consulapi.QueryOptions{AllowStale: true})
 		if err != nil {
-			c.logger.Printf("[WARN] client: unable to query service %q: %v", nomadServerServiceName, err)
-			return err
+			return fmt.Errorf("client.consul: unable to query service %q: %v", nomadServerServiceName, err)
 		}
+
+		if len(services) == 0 {
+			return fmt.Errorf("client.consul: no Nomad servers advertising service %q", nomadServerServiceName)
+		}
+
 		serverAddrs := make([]string, 0, len(services))
 		for _, s := range services {
 			port := strconv.FormatInt(int64(s.ServicePort), 10)
@@ -1273,8 +1304,24 @@ func (c *Client) setupConsulSyncer() error {
 			serverAddrs = append(serverAddrs, net.JoinHostPort(addr, port))
 		}
 
-		if err := c.rpcProxy.SetBackupServers(serverAddrs); err != nil {
-			return err
+		if atomic.LoadInt32(&c.lastHeartbeatFromQuorum) == 1 && now.Before(c.consulPullHeartbeatDeadline) {
+			// Common, healthy path
+			if err := c.rpcProxy.SetBackupServers(serverAddrs); err != nil {
+				return fmt.Errorf("client.consul: unable to set backup servers: %v", err)
+			}
+		} else {
+			// If this Client is talking with a Server that
+			// doesn't have a leader, and we have exceeded the
+			// consulPullHeartbeatDeadline, change the call from
+			// SetBackupServers() to calling AddPrimaryServer()
+			// in order to allow the Clients to randomly begin
+			// considering all known Nomad servers and
+			// eventually, hopefully, find their way to a Nomad
+			// Server that has quorum (assuming Consul has a
+			// server list that is in the majority).
+			for _, s := range serverAddrs {
+				c.rpcProxy.AddPrimaryServer(s)
+			}
 		}
 
 		return nil
diff --git a/client/rpcproxy/rpcproxy.go b/client/rpcproxy/rpcproxy.go
index 899f0434b..2541df010 100644
--- a/client/rpcproxy/rpcproxy.go
+++ b/client/rpcproxy/rpcproxy.go
@@ -645,12 +645,6 @@ func (p *RpcProxy) RefreshServerLists(servers []*structs.NodeServerInfo, numNode
 	// with newer API versions are filtered from the list.  If the list
 	// is missing an address found in the RpcProxy's server list, remove
 	// it from the RpcProxy.
-	//
-	// FIXME(sean@): This is not true.  We rely on an outside pump to set
-	// these values.  In order to catch the orphaned clients where all
-	// Nomad servers were rolled between the heartbeat interval, the
-	// rebalance task queries Consul and adds the servers found in Consul
-	// to the server list in order to reattach an orphan to a server.
 
 	p.serverListLock.Lock()
 	defer p.serverListLock.Unlock()