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Judges appointed by Maggie Hassan
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This page lists judges appointed by Maggie Hassan (D) during her term as Governor of New Hampshire. As of today, the total number of Hassan appointees was 12. For the full profile of Hassan, click here.
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population. Some New Hampshire judges are outside of that coverage scope. As a result, this page does not provide an exhaustive list of all judges appointed by Gov. Hassan.
Appointment process
In New Hampshire, the governor makes a judicial appointment after candidates are recommended by a judicial nominating commission. After the governor selects a judge, the appointment must be confirmed by the executive council.[1]
Appointed judges
The tables below list the governor's appointees to the courts across the state.
Local Courts
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New Hampshire Circuit Courts |
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New Hampshire Circuit Courts |
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New Hampshire Circuit Courts |
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New Hampshire Circuit Courts |
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New Hampshire Sixth Circuit Court |
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New Hampshire Superior Court |
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New Hampshire Superior Court |
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New Hampshire Superior Court |
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New Hampshire Superior Court |
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New Hampshire Superior Court |
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New Hampshire Superior Court |
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New Hampshire Tenth Circuit Court |
Judicial selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in New Hampshire
| Judicial selection in New Hampshire | |
 | |
| New Hampshire Supreme Court | |
| Method: | Gubernatorial appointment |
| Term: | Mandatory retirement at age 70 |
| New Hampshire Superior Court | |
| Method: | Gubernatorial appointment |
| Term: | Mandatory retirement at age 70 |
| New Hampshire Circuit Courts | |
| Method: | Gubernatorial appointment |
| Term: | Mandatory retirement at age 70 |
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 New Hampshire, including:
As of April 2025, judges in New Hampshire were selected through the gubernatorial appointment method, where the governor directly selects judges.
New Hampshire is one of two battleground states the Democratic Governors Association is targeting in 2024 with its Power to Appoint Fund, the other being North Carolina. The fund focuses on electing Democratic governors in battleground states because of their roles in appointing justices to the states' supreme courts. In New Hampshire, the governor appoints state supreme court justices.[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] |
|---|
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| 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 New Hampshire | ||
|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 1,330,111 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 8,953 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 93.7% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 1.3% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2.4% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 1.8% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 3.2% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 92.3% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 34.9% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $66,779 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 9.9% | 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 New Hampshire. **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
New Hampshire voted for the Democratic candidate in six out of the 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, three are located in New Hampshire, accounting for 1.46 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. New Hampshire had one Retained Pivot County and two Boomerang Pivot Counties, accounting for 0.55 and 8.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.
More New Hampshire coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in New Hampshire
- United States congressional delegations from New Hampshire
- Public policy in New Hampshire
- Endorsers in New Hampshire
- New Hampshire fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: New Hampshire," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ The New York Times, "The Quiet Way Democrats Hope to Expand Their Power at the State Level," February 20, 2024
- ↑ 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:
First Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of New Hampshire • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of New Hampshire
State courts:
New Hampshire Supreme Court • New Hampshire Superior Courts • New Hampshire Circuit Courts • New Hampshire Probate Courts • New Hampshire District Court • New Hampshire Family Division
State resources:
Courts in New Hampshire • New Hampshire judicial elections • Judicial selection in New Hampshire
