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How to vote for judges when you've never heard of any of them

Judicial races are the longest and least-known part of most ballots. Here's how to size up judges in ten minutes, what retention votes mean, and why skipping them hands the decision to someone else.

By The Decent Ballot  / 

Judges are the longest part of many ballots and the part people skip. In a big Texas county you might see two dozen judicial races. Most voters have never heard of any of the candidates, and a lot of them stop voting before they get to the end.

That's a mistake, because judges decide bail, sentences, custody, evictions and whether a lawsuit against a powerful company goes anywhere. Here's how to make a good call quickly.

Three questions to ask about any judge

  1. Have they worked in this kind of court? A family court candidate should have handled family cases. A criminal court candidate should have tried criminal cases, ideally from both sides.
  2. How do they treat people with no money? Look for news about bail practices, fines and fees, court-appointed lawyers, and how fast cases move. Judges who keep poor people in jail because they can't afford bail are making a choice.
  3. Do they act like politicians? Partisan grandstanding from the bench, campaigning on culture-war issues, or a record of being reversed for ignoring the law are red flags whichever party it comes from.

Shortcuts that actually help

Retention elections: yes or no

In Arizona, Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Florida and several other states, appellate judges (and in some places trial judges) face retention votes: no opponent, just "shall this judge be retained?" Nearly all judges are retained. A no vote matters most when there's a specific reason, such as a judge who joined a ruling to throw out voters' choices or who has a discipline record. Our state pages cover the retention votes on each statewide ballot.

Partisan judicial races

Texas, North Carolina, Ohio (party labels on Supreme Court and appeals races since 2021) and a few other states put party labels next to judges. In Texas, straight-ticket voting is gone, so every judicial race has to be marked one by one. That's tedious on a long ballot, so bring notes. You're allowed to bring paper notes into the voting booth in Texas; phones aren't allowed near the voting stations.

Find your judicial races

Every county guide lists the judicial races on that county's ballot:

Alaska

Arizona

Florida

Georgia

Iowa

Kansas

Missouri

Nevada

New York

North Carolina

Ohio

Texas

Wisconsin

See who's on your ballot

Every candidate in a sentence or two, rated on character, with sources. Type your ZIP code.

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