Gubernatorial appointment of judges

Methods of judicial selection
Election methods
Partisan election
Nonpartisan election
Michigan method
Retention election
Assisted appointment
Assisted appointment
Bar-controlled commission
Governor-controlled commission
Hybrid commission
Direct appointment
Court appointment
Gubernatorial appointment
Legislative election
Municipal government selection

The gubernatorial appointment method of judicial selection is a process by which the governor appoints state judges directly without having to select from a list of names provided by a selection committee. As of April 2023, all states using this method required a legislative or other government body to confirm the appointments. This selection method is the most similar used for state supreme court judges to the one used at the federal level for Article III judges, who are appointed by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

As of April 2024, five states—California, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New Jersey—used this method at the state supreme court level and four states used this selection method for at least one type of court below the supreme court level.

Other methods of judicial selection include: assisted appointment, partisan and nonpartisan elections, the Michigan method, court appointment, municipal government selection, and legislative elections. To read more about how these selection methods are used across the country, click here.

How gubernatorial appointment works

The specifics of this selection method vary by state. In each state, the governor appoints a judge and is not required to select a name from a list provided to him or her by a judicial selection commission. After a nominee is chosen, another body must confirm the appointment before the nominee can take office. Below are examples of how gubernatorial appointment methods worked in six states, as of 2023.

• California: The governor's nominee must be confirmed by the California Commission on Judicial Appointments. This commission is made up of the state's attorney general, the chief justice of the California Supreme Court, and the state's most senior presiding justice of the California Courts of Appeal. The State Bar of California's Commission on Judicial Nominee Evaluation (also known as the Jenny Commission) evaluates all judicial candidates and makes non-binding recommendations to the governor.

• Maine: The governor's nominee must be confirmed by a majority vote of the Maine State Senate. Prior to a vote of the full chamber, the Judiciary Committee considers their nominations.

• Massachusetts: The governor's nominee must be confirmed by a majority vote of the Massachusetts Governor's Council. There are nine members of this council: the lieutenant governor and eight members elected every two years in partisan elections.

• New Jersey: The governor's nominee must be confirmed by a majority vote of the New Jersey State Senate. Prior to a vote of the full chamber, the Senate Judiciary Committee considers their nominations.

• New Hampshire: The governor's nominee must be confirmed by a majority vote of the New Hampshire Executive Council. The five members of the council are elected every two years in partisan elections.

States using this method

State supreme courts

At the state supreme court level, the following states use this selection method: California, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and New Jersey.

The map below highlights selection methods in state supreme courts across the country.