Judges appointed by Mitch Daniels
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This page lists judges appointed by Mitch Daniels (R) during their term as Governor of Indiana. As of today, the total number of Daniels appointees was 30. For the full profile of Daniels, click here.
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population. Some Indiana judges are outside of that coverage scope. As a result, this page does not provide an exhaustive list of all judges appointed by Gov. Daniels.
Appointment process
In Indiana, the governor makes a judicial appointment after candidates are recommended by the Judicial Nominating Commission. Following an appointment, appellate court judges must stand for election after two years in office. Trial court judges must run for the seat in the next general election.
Appointed judges
The tables below list the governor's appointees to the courts across the state.
State Courts
Supreme Court
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Indiana Supreme Court |
October 18, 2010 - August 31, 2022 |
|
|
Indiana Supreme Court |
April 2, 2012 - Present |
|
|
Indiana Supreme Court |
November 7, 2012 - Present |
Court of Appeals
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Indiana Court of Appeals 2nd District |
August 1, 2007 - Present |
|
|
Indiana Court of Appeals 4th District |
August 7, 2012 - Present |
|
|
Indiana Court of Appeals 5th District |
May 5, 2008 - Present |
Other State Courts
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Indiana Tax Court |
January 1, 2011 - August 30, 2023 |
Local Courts
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Boone County Circuit Court |
||
|
Boone County Superior Court |
||
|
Carroll County Superior Court |
2010 - July 31, 2020 |
|
|
Daviess County Circuit Court No. 1 |
||
|
DeKalb County Superior Court II |
||
|
Delaware County Circuit Court Seat 2 |
||
|
Henry County Circuit Court |
||
|
Howard County Superior Court |
||
|
Jackson County Superior Court No. 1 |
||
|
Lake County Superior Court Civil Division Room 1 - Hammond |
||
|
Lawrence County Circuit Court No. 1 |
2007 - 2019 |
|
|
Madison County Circuit Court No. 1 |
||
|
Madison County Circuit Court No. 4 |
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|
Marion County Superior Court |
||
|
Marion County Superior Court |
2013 - Present |
|
|
Marion County Superior Court |
||
|
Marion County Superior Court |
2007 - Present |
|
|
Miami County Circuit Court No. 1 |
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|
Rush County Superior Court No. 1 |
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|
Shelby County Superior Court No. 2 |
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|
Tippecanoe County Superior Court No. 3 |
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|
Wayne County Superior Court I |
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|
Wells County Circuit Court |
Judicial selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Indiana
| Judicial selection in Indiana | |
 | |
| Indiana Supreme Court | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 2 or 10 years[1] |
| Indiana Court of Appeals | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 2 or 10 years[2] |
| Indiana Circuit Courts | |
| Method: | Partisan election |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Indiana Superior Courts | |
| Method: | Partisan election |
| Term: | 6 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 Indiana, including:
As of April 2025, Supreme Court and Court of Appeals judges in Indiana were selected through the assisted appointment method, where the governor selects a nominee from a list provided by a nominating commission. Most Superior Court and Circuit Court judges were selected through partisan elections, though some exceptions exist where judges were selected through nonpartisan elections or by assisted appointment. Judges seeking to serve more than one term must stand for retention or re-election, depending on the position's selection method.[3] Judges' terms begin on January 1 following their election.[4]
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[5] |
|---|
|
|
| State courts and their selection methods across the U.S., including the District of Columbia[5] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Supreme Court (of 53)[6] | 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[7] | 1[8] | 17[9] |
State profile
| Demographic data for Indiana | ||
|---|---|---|
| Indiana | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 6,612,768 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 35,826 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 84.2% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 9.2% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.9% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 6.4% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 87.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 24.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $49,255 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 18.4% | 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 Indiana. **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 Indiana
Indiana voted Republican 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, five are located in Indiana, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[10]
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. Indiana had five Retained Pivot Counties, 2.76 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Indiana coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Indiana
- United States congressional delegations from Indiana
- Public policy in Indiana
- Endorsers in Indiana
- Indiana fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Following his or her appointment, judges must stand for retention at the first even-year, statewide general election after he or she has served two full years. Subsequent terms are 10 years.
- ↑ Following his or her appointment, judges must stand for retention at the first even-year, statewide general election after he or she has served two full years. Subsequent terms are 10 years.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedINgen - ↑ Indiana General Assembly, "Title 33. Courts and Court Officers," accessed Aug. 23, 2021
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 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:
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Indiana, Southern District of Indiana • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Indiana, Southern District of Indiana
State courts:
Indiana Supreme Court • Indiana Court of Appeals • Indiana Tax Court • Indiana Superior Courts • Indiana Circuit Courts • Indiana City Courts • Indiana County Courts • Indiana Municipal Courts • Indiana Small Claims Courts • St. Joseph County Probate Court • Indiana Town Courts
State resources:
Courts in Indiana • Indiana judicial elections • Judicial selection in Indiana
