Colorado Supreme Court elections

There are seven justices on the Colorado Supreme Court. For more information about these elections, visit the Colorado judicial elections page.

Judicial selection

See also: Judicial selection in Colorado

The seven justices on the Colorado Supreme Court are selected through the assisted appointment method. Each justice is appointed by the governor from a list of names compiled by the Colorado Supreme Court Nominating Commission.

Initial terms last at least two years, after which justices must stand for retention in a yes-no election. Subsequent terms last 10 years.

Qualifications

To serve on this court, a justice must be:

• a qualified elector in the state;
• licensed to practice law in the state for five years; and
• under the age of 72 (retirement by 72 is mandatory).

Chief justice

The chief justice of the supreme court is selected by peer vote. Beginning in January 2021, the chief justice began serving for a set term on a rotating basis. Previously, the chief justice served indefinitely as long as he or she had the support of his or her peers.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts

If a midterm vacancy occurs on the court, the seat is filled as it normally would be if the vacancy occurred at the end of a justice's term. A judicial nominating commission recommends to the governor three qualified candidates for an appellate court vacancy (two or three for a trial court vacancy), and the governor selects a successor from that list. After occupying the seat for two years, the newly appointed justice stands for retention in the next general election. The justice then serves a full 10-year term if he or she is retained by voters.

The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.

Boatright's seat

General election

General election for Colorado Supreme Court

Incumbent Brian Boatright won election in the general election for Colorado Supreme Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brian Boatright (Nonpartisan)	100.0	1,571,597

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,571,597
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Márquez' seat

General election

General election for Colorado Supreme Court

Incumbent Monica Márquez won election in the general election for Colorado Supreme Court on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Monica Márquez (Nonpartisan)	100.0	1,613,684

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,613,684
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2020

See also: Colorado Supreme Court elections, 2020

Candidates and results

Hart's seat

Colorado Supreme Court, Melissa Hart's seat

Melissa Hart was retained to the Colorado Supreme Court on November 3, 2020 with 74.6% of the vote.

			Retention  Vote	%	Votes
		✔	Yes	74.6	2,020,956
			No	25.4	689,323
			Total Votes		2,710,279

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It has been certified. Source

Armando Samour's seat

Colorado Supreme Court, Carlos Armando Samour Jr.'s seat

Carlos Armando Samour Jr. was retained to the Colorado Supreme Court on November 3, 2020 with 73.4% of the vote.

			Retention  Vote	%	Votes
		✔	Yes	73.4	1,966,343
			No	26.6	710,809
			Total Votes		2,677,152

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It has been certified. Source

2018

See also: Colorado Supreme Court elections, 2018

Candidates and results

See also: Colorado Supreme Court elections, 2018

Colorado Supreme Court, Richard Gabriel's seat

Richard Gabriel was retained to the Colorado Supreme Court on November 6, 2018 with 74.3% of the vote.

			Retention  Vote	%	Votes
		✔	Yes	74.3	1,497,141
			No	25.7	517,347
			Total Votes		2,014,488

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It has been certified. Source

2016

William W. Hood was retained in the Colorado Supreme Court, Hood's seat election with 70.98% of the vote.

Colorado Supreme Court, Hood's seat, 2016
Name	Yes votes
William W. Hood	70.98%
Source: Colorado Secretary of State Official Certified Results

2014

Retention

Judge	Election Vote
Miller-LermanLindsey Miller-Lerman	68.4% A

2010

Colorado Supreme Court, Associate Justice 2010 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Michael Bender		872,387	60.4%
Against retention		571,029	39.6%

Colorado Supreme Court, Associate Justice 2010 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Nancy Rice		891,962	62%
Against retention		548,633	38%

Colorado Supreme Court, Associate Justice 2010 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Alex Martinez		859,051	60%
Against retention		584,026	40%

Colorado Supreme Court, Associate Justice 2010 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Allison Eid		1,338,571	74.6%
Against retention		456,337	25.4%

• Click here for 2010 general election results from the Colorado Secretary of State.

2008

Colorado Supreme Court, Associate Justice 2008 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Gregory Hobbs		1,282,348	72.4%
Against retention		489,429	27.6%

• Click here for 2008 general election results from the Colorado Secretary of State.

2002

Colorado Supreme Court, Associate Justice 2002 General election results
Candidates		Votes	Percent
Nathan Coats		828,622	74.3%
Against retention		286,961	25.7%

See also

Colorado	Judicial Selection	More Courts
Courts in Colorado Colorado Court of Appeals Colorado Supreme Court	Elections: 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 Gubernatorial appointments Judicial selection in Colorado	Federal courts State courts Local courts

Footnotes

Colorado courts

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Federal courts:

Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Colorado • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Colorado

State courts:

Colorado Supreme Court • Colorado Court of Appeals • Colorado District Courts • Colorado County Courts • Denver Probate Court • Denver Juvenile Court • Colorado Municipal Courts • Colorado Water Courts

State resources:

Courts in Colorado • Colorado judicial elections • Judicial selection in Colorado