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Judges appointed by Asa Hutchinson
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This page lists judges appointed by Asa Hutchinson (R) during his term as Governor of Arkansas. As of today, the total number of Hutchinson appointees was 15. For the full profile of Hutchinson, click here.
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population. Some Arkansas judges are outside of that coverage scope. As a result, this page does not provide an exhaustive list of all judges appointed by Gov. Hutchinson.
Appointment process
In Arkansas, the governor makes judicial appointments to fill vacancies. After the governor appoints a judge, he or she will be up for re-election in the first general election that occurs at least four months after the seat becomes vacant.[1]
Appointed judges
The tables below list the governor's appointees to the courts across the state.
State Courts
Supreme Court
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Arkansas Supreme Court Chief Justice |
Court of Appeals
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Arkansas Court of Appeals District 4 Position 2 |
2019 - December 31, 2020 |
Local Courts
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Arkansas 10th Judicial Circuit Division 4 |
||
|
Arkansas 13th Judicial Circuit Division 2 |
January 1, 2017 - Present |
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|
Arkansas 14th Judicial Circuit Division 1 |
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|
Arkansas 16th Judicial Circuit |
||
|
Arkansas 16th Judicial Circuit Division 1 |
||
|
Arkansas 1st Judicial Circuit |
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|
Arkansas 20th Judicial Circuit Division 1 |
||
|
Arkansas 2nd Judicial Circuit Division 8 |
December 31, 2019 - 2023 |
|
|
Arkansas 3rd Judicial Circuit Division 3 |
December 31, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Arkansas 6th Judicial Circuit Division 7 |
March 1, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Craighead County District Court Arkansas Position 2 (defunct) |
||
|
Fulton County Local District Court |
2017 - 2018 |
|
|
Marion County District Court (defunct) |
November 1, 2021 - December 31, 2022 |
Judicial selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Arkansas
| Judicial selection in Arkansas | |
 | |
| Arkansas Supreme Court | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 8 years |
| Arkansas Court of Appeals | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 8 years |
| Arkansas Circuit Courts | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Arkansas District Courts | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 4 years |
Judicial selection refers to the process used to select judges for courts. At the state level, methods of judicial selection vary substantially in the United States, and in some cases between different court types within a state. There are six primary types of judicial selection: partisan and nonpartisan elections, the Michigan method, assisted appointment, gubernatorial appointment, and legislative elections. To read more about how these selection methods are used across the country, click here.
This article covers how state court judges are selected in Arkansas, including:
- Arkansas Supreme Court,
- Arkansas Court of Appeals,
- Arkansas Circuit Courts, and
- Limited jurisdiction courts
As of March 2023, judges for all courts in the state were selected through the nonpartisan election of judges. While the appellate and general jurisdiction courts have varying policies on judge qualifications, chief justice selection and term length, they share common regulations on re-election and the filling of interim vacancies. Likewise, the limited jurisdiction courts function largely the same across the board, differing primarily in judge qualifications.[2]
Click here to notify us of changes to judicial selection methods in this state.
| Appellate state court selection in the United States, by general selection method[3] |
|---|
|
|
| State courts and their selection methods across the U.S., including the District of Columbia[3] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Supreme Court (of 53)[4] | Courts of Appeal (of 46) | Trial Courts (of 147) |
| Partisan elections (PE) | 8 | 6 | 39 |
| Nonpartisan elections (NPE) | 13 | 16 | 34 |
| Legislative elections (LE) | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| Gubernatorial appointment of judges (GA) | 5 | 3 | 6 |
| Assisted appointment (AA) | 22 | 18 | 46 |
| Combination or other | 3[5] | 1[6] | 17[7] |
State profile
| Demographic data for Arkansas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 2,977,853 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 52,035 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 78% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 15.5% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.4% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.6% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.1% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 6.9% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 84.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 21.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $41,371 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 22.9% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Arkansas. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Arkansas
Arkansas voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, one is located in Arkansas, accounting for 0.5 percent of the total pivot counties.[8]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Arkansas had one Retained Pivot County, 0.55 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Arkansas coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Arkansas
- United States congressional delegations from Arkansas
- Public policy in Arkansas
- Endorsers in Arkansas
- Arkansas fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Arkansas," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Arkansas Judiciary, "Court Structure, " accessed March 27, 2023
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection," archived February 2, 2015
- ↑ Both Oklahoma and Texas have two state supreme courts: one for civil matters and one for criminal matters.
- ↑ Michigan and Ohio use nonpartisan general elections with candidates selected through partisan primaries or conventions. In the District of Columbia, judges are selected in the same manner as federal judges.
- ↑ Judges of the North Dakota Court of Appeals are appointed on an as-needed basis by the supreme court justices.
- ↑ Most courts that use combination/alternative methods (for example, mayoral appointment) are local level courts. These courts are often governed by selection guidelines that are unique to their specific region.
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
Federal courts:
Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Arkansas, Western District of Arkansas • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Arkansas, Western District of Arkansas
State courts:
Arkansas Supreme Court • Arkansas Court of Appeals • Arkansas Circuit Courts • Arkansas District Courts • Arkansas City Courts
State resources:
Courts in Arkansas • Arkansas judicial elections • Judicial selection in Arkansas
