Judges aren’t exactly household names, although one on your ballot shares a name with a certain multiplatinum-selling musician. They generally don’t campaign, either.
The simple answer to the question, though, is that our state constitution requires it. California justices serve 12-year terms rather than the lifetime appointments that federal judges receive.
Unlike conventional elections, state Supreme Court and appeals court judges don’t run against opponents. Instead, voters are given a simple yes-or-no question on retaining a judge. If a majority votes a judge out, the governor appoints their replacement.
That’s why your ballot asks whether two California Supreme Court justices, Kelli Evans and Joshua Groban, should keep their jobs. You’ll also see a number of appeals court justices depending on where you live.
- Thomas Wilhite, a retired California Court of Appeals justice: “It does give the court of appeal a measure of independence because you don’t stand for election constantly. But it gives the voters a chance to have a say and confirm the continued service of the justice.”
Californians only used their power to unseat sitting justices once. That was in 1986 when voters swept three state supreme court justices off the bench over their rulings against death sentences.
Governors nominate appeals court and Supreme Court justices, but that isn’t the end of the process. They’re vetted by the state bar and then reviewed by the chief justice, the attorney general and the senior presiding justice at the California Court of Appeal. The nominees also appear before a public hearing.
You can search for any disciplinary actions against justices at the Commission on Judicial Performance.
It’s common for voters to skip over the judicial elections. In 2022, for example, about 8.3 million Californians voted in elections for state supreme court justices. That’s about 2.5 million fewer than the number of people who voted in our U.S. Senate race.
Retired California Supreme Court Justice Martin Jenkins was up for retention that year. He wants Californians to understand the care and commitment judges put into their work, saying he worked six or seven days a week throughout his career. Voters should research the justices just as they would any other politician or ballot measure, Jenkins said.