Minnesota judicial elections
Judges in Minnesota participate in nonpartisan elections in even-numbered years. Judges must run for re-election in nonpartisan elections for subsequent terms.
Minnesota is one of 12 states that uses nonpartisan elections to select judges and does not use retention elections for subsequent terms. To read more about how states use judicial elections to select judges across the country, click here.
| Supreme Court | Court of Appeals | District Court |
|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms | Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms | Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms |
The state constitution reads that judges “shall be elected from the area in which they serve.”[1] Under the Minnesota constitution, judges' terms begin and end on the first Monday in January following election.[2]
Elections
- Minnesota Supreme Court elections, 2024
- Minnesota intermediate appellate court elections, 2024
- Minnesota Supreme Court elections, 2022
- Minnesota intermediate appellate court elections, 2022
- Minnesota Supreme Court elections, 2020
- Minnesota intermediate appellate court elections, 2020
- Minnesota Supreme Court elections, 2018
- Minnesota intermediate appellate court elections, 2018
- Minnesota local trial court judicial elections, 2018
- Minnesota judicial elections, 2016
- Minnesota judicial elections, 2014
- Minnesota judicial elections, 2012
- Minnesota judicial elections, 2010
- Minnesota Supreme Court elections, 2008-2010
Election rules
Primary election
In the nonpartisan primary, the two candidates (for each seat) who receive the greatest number of votes advance to the general election. If no more than two candidates filed to run for each seat, their names do not appear on the primary ballot, but they advance directly to the general election.[3]
Filing period
The filing period for offices contested in the November general election lasts for two weeks from the end of May until the beginning of June. Candidates file with either the county auditor of the county in which they reside or the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State. Candidates must either pay a filing fee or submit a petition in place of the fee.[4]
Reform
Former Governor Al Quie, a Republican, has led a movement to amend the constitution to change the way judges are elected in Minnesota. In 2007, he headed a citizens commission called the Coalition for Impartial Justice that recommended the state scrap the contested elections and switch to a merit-based gubernatorial appointment system, similar to the Missouri Plan. The commission also called for a corresponding judicial performance evaluation commission, something common in states with a Missouri-style system. Under this system, judges would face retention elections, whereby voters would vote whether to retain or remove a judge, and the governor would select any necessary replacements.[5][6]
The Minnesota State Bar Association takes the position that a potential performance evaluation commission should include both lawyers and citizens, appointed by multiple authorities so as to provide checks and balances.[7]
By 2013, the bipartisan idea was losing support with Republican legislators, while still largely popular with Democrats. The issue did not appear on the 2014 ballot.[6][8]
Notes
Until 2002, the Minnesota Code of Judicial Conduct stated that judges could not seek or accept political endorsements. Judges were also prohibited from soliciting campaign contributions and discussing their views on contested legal or political issues. The U.S. Supreme Court and the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled these provisions in violation of the First Amendment.[5]
Voters are informed when a candidate on the ballot is an incumbent.[1]
See also
External links
- Minnesota Judicial Branch
- Minnesota Secretary of State
- Officer of Governor Mark Dayton, "Minnesota Commission on Judicial Selection"
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 League of Women Voters Minnesota, "How Minnesota judges are selected," accessed July 1, 2014
- ↑ The Office of the Revisor of Statutes, "Constitution of the State of Minnesota," accessed August 4, 2016
- ↑ 2016 Minnesota Election Laws, "204D.07 PLACING NAMES ON BALLOTS," accessed August 4, 2016
- ↑ Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State, "Guide for Major Party or Nonpartisan Candidates," accessed July 2, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 American Judicature Society, "Judicial Selection in the States: Minnesota," archived January 11, 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Star Tribune, "Political divide emerges on plan to overhaul Minnesota judicial elections," September 22, 2013
- ↑ Minnesota State Bar Association Judiciary Committee, "Minnesota's Judiciary: Frequently Asked Questions," 2008
- ↑ Minnesota Judicial Selection Amendment (2014)
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Federal courts:
Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Minnesota • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Minnesota
State courts:
Minnesota Supreme Court • Minnesota Court of Appeals • Minnesota District Courts • Minnesota Problem-Solving Courts • Minnesota Tax Court • Minnesota Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals
State resources:
Courts in Minnesota • Minnesota judicial elections • Judicial selection in Minnesota
