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State judicial elections, 2028

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2028 State
Judicial Elections
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View judicial elections by state:

As of research conducted in 2026, a total of 222 appellate court seats are up for election in 2028. The number of seats up for election may change due to resignations and appointments. The seats include:

  • 72 supreme court seats
  • 150 intermediate appellate court seats.

In addition, in the U.S. Territories, nine judges will be on the ballot in retention elections in 2028. One judge on the Guam Supreme Court, one judge on the Northern Mariana Islands Supreme Court, five on the Guam Superior Court, and two on the Northern Mariana Islands Superior Court must stand for retention to remain on the bench.

Ballotpedia provides coverage of supreme court and intermediate appellate court elections, as well as local trial court elections for judges within the 100 largest cities in the United States as measured by population.

On this page, you will find:

Click here for information on state supreme court elections. Click here for information on state intermediate appellate court elections. Click here for information on local trial court elections.

State supreme court offices up for election in 2028

See also: State supreme court elections, 2028

Click the tabs below to view information about the elections this year. In this section, you will find:

  • A list of seats up for election
  • A list of candidates running
  • Ballotpedia's Sample Ballot Lookup Tool

The following states are holding an election for a state supreme court seat in 2028. This list is subject to change if judges retire or are appointed.



2028 State Supreme Court Elections
StateSeats up for electionElection datesElection method
Alabama3November 7, 2028Partisan
Alaska1November 7, 2028Retention
Arizona4November 7, 2028Retention
Arkansas1March 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Colorado1November 7, 2028Retention
Florida4November 7, 2028Retention
Georgia3May 23, 2028Nonpartisan
Idaho2May 16, 2028Nonpartisan
Illinois1November 7, 2028Partisan and retention
Indiana1November 7, 2028Retention
Iowa4November 7, 2028Retention
Kansas5November 7, 2028Retention
Kentucky1November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Louisiana1November 7, 2028Partisan
Michigan1November 7, 2028Partisan
Minnesota1November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Mississippi4November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Montana2November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Nebraska5November 7, 2028Retention
Nevada2November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
New Mexico1November 7, 2028Retention
North Carolina3November 7, 2028Partisan
North Dakota1November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Ohio3November 7, 2028Partisan
Oklahoma4November 7, 2028Retention
Oregon1November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
South Dakota1November 7, 2028Retention
Texas6November 7, 2028Partisan
Washington2November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Wisconsin1April 4, 2028Nonpartisan
Wyoming2November 7, 2028Retention

State intermediate court offices up for election in 2028

See also: State intermediate appellate court elections, 2028

Click the tabs below to view information about the elections this year. In this section, you will find:

  • A list of seats up for election
  • A list of candidates running
  • Ballotpedia's Sample Ballot Lookup Tool

The following states are holding elections for intermediate appellate court seats in 2028. This list is subject to change if judges retire or are appointed.



2028 state intermediate appellate court elections
StateSeats up for electionElection datesElection method
Alaska1November 7, 2028Retention
Arizona7November 7, 2028Retention
Arkansas4March 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Colorado3November 7, 2028Retention
Florida27November 7, 2028Retention
Georgia3May 23, 2028Nonpartisan
Idaho1May 16, 2028Nonpartisan
Illinois4November 7, 2028Partisan and retention
Indiana1November 7, 2028Retention
Iowa2November 7, 2028Retention
Louisiana5Partisan
Maryland2November 7, 2028Retention
Michigan7November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Minnesota7November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Missouri3November 7, 2028Retention
Nebraska5November 7, 2028Retention
Nevada3November 7, 2028Retention
New Mexico2November 7, 2028Retention
North Carolina5November 7, 2028Partisan
Ohio25November 7, 2028Partisan
Oklahoma4November 7, 2028Retention
Oregon5November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
Texas15November 7, 2028Partisan
Washington5November 7, 2028Nonpartisan
West Virginia1May 9, 2028Nonpartisan
Wisconsin3April 4, 2028Nonpartisan


Judicial selection methods

See also: Judicial selection in the states

Methods of judicial selection vary substantially across the United States.[1] Though each state has a unique set of guidelines governing how they fill their state and local judiciaries, there are five main methods. Two methods are primarily election-based; three methods are primarily appointment-based.

Election-based methods

  • Partisan elections: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot alongside a label designating political party affiliation.
  • Nonpartisan elections: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot without a label designating party affiliation.

Appointment-based methods

  • Gubernatorial appointment: Judges are appointed by the governor. In some cases, approval from the legislative body is required.
  • Assisted appointment, also known as merit selection or the Missouri Plan: A nominating commission reviews the qualifications of judicial candidates and submits a list of names to the governor, who appoints a judge from the list. After serving an initial term, judges typically run in a yes-no retention election to remain on the court.[2] At the state supreme court level, this selection method is further divided into three types. Click here to learn more.
  • Legislative elections: Judges are selected by the state legislature.

States may apply more than one of the five methods across different levels of courts. For example, a state may choose its appellate court judges by assisted appointment while choosing its trial court judges in partisan elections. Some states may even select judges of the same court level differently depending on the population of an area or local opinion.[1][2] States may also modify any of the systems above in their own way. The assisted appointment method, in particular, comes in a variety of forms. For instance, some states require the governor to choose from the commission's list of nominees, while in other states the list is only a suggestion.[1]

Types of courts

Depending on your state, judges from several different types of courts may appear on the ballot, each with different jurisdictions. There are four types of courts, listed here in ascending order of jurisdiction:

  1. Limited jurisdiction courts
  2. General jurisdiction courts
  3. Intermediate appellate courts
  4. Courts of last resort

Limited jurisdiction courts

Limited jurisdiction is a term used to describe courts with legal authority restricted to specific subjects, cases, or persons. Examples of limited jurisdiction courts include family courts, traffic courts, probate courts, and military courts.[3] Forty-six states have limited jurisdiction courts. Washington, D.C., and four states (California, Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota) do not have such courts.[4] Rather, their general jurisdiction courts are assigned cases that might normally have been given to a limited jurisdiction court.

General jurisdiction courts

General jurisdiction is a term used to describe courts that do not have limits on the type of cases they can hear. Cases typically originate in general jurisdiction courts, and their decisions can be appealed to intermediate appellate courts. All 50 states and Washington, D.C., have general jurisdiction courts. General jurisdiction courts are sometimes referred to as trial courts or district courts.

Intermediate appellate courts

See also: State intermediate appellate court elections, 2028

Intermediate appellate courts, as their name suggests, serve as an intermediate step between the trial courts and the courts of last resort in a state. Their jurisdiction varies from state to state.

Forty-two states have at least one intermediate appellate court. Some states have more than one of these types of courts. For example, Alabama has one intermediate appellate court for civil matters and another for criminal matters. Pennsylvania's superior court and commonwealth court are both appellate courts but have different jurisdictions. Other states, such as Illinois and California, have multiple divisions of intermediate appellate courts with varying degrees of independence from each other. Intermediate appellate courts are sometimes called courts of appeal.

Courts of last resort

See also: State supreme court elections, 2028

A state court of last resort is the highest judicial body within a jurisdiction's court system. It is a court with the highest appellate authority, meaning that its rulings are not subject to review by any other court in the state. A court of last resort is often, but not always, referred to as a supreme court.[5]

All 50 states and Washington, D.C., have at least one court of last resort. Oklahoma and Texas both have two courts of last resort, one for civil appeals and one for criminal appeals.

Incumbent win rates

Click the tabs below to view information about incumbent win rates in state supreme court elections over time. In this section, you will find:

  • Win rates by year
  • Win rates in partisan elections
  • Win rates in nonpartisan elections
  • Win rates in retention elections
  • Win rates by state

Across all types of state supreme court elections, incumbent justices running for re-election won 92% of the time from 2008 to 2025. The year when the most incumbents lost was 2024, when eight incumbents did not win re-election. The year with the lowest re-election rate was 2015, when out of two justices, only one (50%) was re-elected. In years where more justices were running, the year with the lowest re-election rate was 2024, when 85% of justices were re-elected..

Incumbent win rates in state supreme court elections (2008-2025)
Election yearTotal incumbent electionsIncumbent elections wonIncumbent elections lostIncumbent win rate
2025330100%
20247264885%
20230———
20227875394%
20210———
20207065592%
20190———
20185953687%
2017440100%
20166562395%
201521150%
20147371298%
2013220100%
20126863590%
2011220100%
20106862693%
2009110100%
20086357690%
TOTAL6305854592%

Historical election data

There were 1,306 state judicial elections held from 2016 to 2023.

State judicial elections, 2016-2023
Year Court of last resort seats Intermediate appellate court seats Total
2023
2
13
15
2022
84
298
384
2021
1
14
15
2020
78
201
279
2019
3
14
17
2018
68
244
312
2017
4
17
21
2016
76
189
265
Total
316
990
1,306

Courts of last resort

Retention

From 2016 to 2023, retention elections took place for 124 judicial seats on courts of last resort. All but one of those judges were retained.

Non-retention

There were 192 non-retention elections held from 2016 to 2023, with 127 races contested (66.1%). Incumbents ran for re-election 71.7% of the time. Of the incumbents who ran for re-election, 88.7% won re-election.

The table below is organized by year and includes the total number of seats up for election, the number of contested seats, the number and percentage of incumbents who sought re-election, the number and percentage of incumbents who faced opposition, and the number and percentage of incumbents who won another term.

Court of last resort elections, 2016-2023
Year Total seats Seats contested Incumbents who
sought re-election 		% incumbents who
sought re-election 		Incumbents who
faced opposition 		% incumbents who
faced opposition 		Incumbents who
were re-elected 		% incumbents who
were re-elected
2023
2
2
0
0%
0
0%
0
0%
2022
48
30
34
70.8%
21
61.8%
32
94.1%
2021
1
1
0
0.0%
0
0.0%
0
0.0%
2020
49
37
41
83.7%
29
70.7%
36
87.8%
2019
3
3
0
0.0%
0
0.0%
0
0.0%
2018
45
25
34
75.6%
19
55.9%
28
82.4%
2017
2
1
2
100%
1
50.0%
2
100%
2016
42
28
31
73.8%
17
54.8%
28
90.3%
Total
192
127
142
71.7%
87
61.3%
126
88.7%

Intermediate appellate courts

Retention

From 2016 to 2023, retention elections took place for 431 judicial seats on intermediate appellate courts. All were retained.

Non-retention

There were 559 non-retention elections from 2016 to 2023, with 236 races contested (42.2%). Incumbents ran for re-election 76.4% of the time. Of the incumbents who ran for re-election, 85.7% won re-election.

The table below is organized by year and includes the total number of seats up for election, the number of contested seats, the number and percentage of incumbents who sought re-election, the number and percentage of incumbents who faced opposition, and the number and percentage of incumbents who won another term.

Intermediate appellate court elections, 2016-2023
Year Total seats Seats contested Incumbents who
sought re-election 		% incumbents who
sought re-election 		Incumbents who
faced opposition 		% incumbents who
faced opposition 		Incumbents who
were re-elected 		% incumbents who
were re-elected
2023
11
3
7
63.6%
1
14.3%
6
85.7%
2022
148
51
114
77.0%
29
25.4%
103
90.4%
2021
10
5
5
50.0%
3
60.0%
3
60.0%
2020
117
57
93
79.5%
37
39.8%
84
90.3%
2019
10
7
5
50.0%
0
0.0%
5
100.0%
2018
142
69
112
78.9%
44
39.3%
82
73.2%
2017
16
11
6
37.5%
3
50.0%
4
66.7%
2016
105
33
85
81.0%
20
23.5%
79
92.9%
Total
559
236
427
76.4%
137
32.1%
366
85.7%

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection," archived February 2, 2015
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 American Bar Association, "Judicial Selection: The Process of Choosing Judges," June 2008
  3. ↑ US Legal, "Limited Jurisdiction Law & Legal Definition," accessed December 17, 2015
  4. ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Limited Jurisdiction Courts—Challenges, Opportunities, and Strategies for Action," accessed September 23, 2015
  5. ↑ U.S. Legal, "Court of last resort Definition," accessed August 25, 2013


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