New Mexico Supreme Court elections, 2026
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The terms of two New Mexico Supreme Court justices will expire on December 31, 2026. The two seats are up for partisan election on November 3, 2026.
Judges with expiring terms
- This is a list of the justices who must stand for partisan election in 2026 in order to remain on the bench. Justices may choose not to stand for election. The list is subject to change if justices retire or are appointed.
■ Shannon Bacon
■ David Thomson
Candidates and results
Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:
- Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
- Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies
Shannon Bacon's seat
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
David K. Thomson's seat
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
Voting information
- See also: Voting in New Mexico
Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.
About the New Mexico Supreme Court
- See also: New Mexico Supreme Court
The New Mexico Supreme Court is the court of last resort in the state of New Mexico. The court is composed of five justices, four associate justices and one chief justice.[1]
Political composition
This is the political composition of the court heading into the 2026 election.
| ■ Shannon Bacon | Appointed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) in 2019 | |
| ■ David Thomson | Appointed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) in 2019 | |
| ■ Julie Vargas | Appointed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) in 2020 | |
| ■ Briana H. Zamora | Appointed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) in 2021 | |
| ■ Michael Vigil | Elected in 2018 |
Selection
The five justices of the New Mexico Supreme Court are chosen through partisan elections. After serving for one year, the appointed justice must win the first partisan general election after their appointment to serve the remainder of the unexpired term. Justices serve eight-year terms.[2] To serve additional terms, justices must receive at least 57% of the vote in a retention election.[2]
Qualifications
To serve on the supreme court, a person must:
- be at least 35 years old;
- have practiced law for ten years before assuming office; and
- have been a New Mexico resident for three years before assuming office.[3]
Chief justice
The chief justice of the supreme court is selected by a peer vote of the justices to serve a two-year term. The chief justice must have been elected to the court, not appointed to fill a vacancy.[4]
Vacancies
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a justice from a list of qualified candidates recommended by a judicial nominating commission. The appointed judge will serve until the first general election held one year after their appointment. The appointee must run in that general election to serve the remainder of the unexpired term.[5]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ New Mexico Supreme Court, "Overview," accessed January 29, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 New Mexico Secretary of State, "Constitution," accessed September 2, 2021 (Article VI Section 33) Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "nmconst33" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Constitution," accessed September 2, 2021 (Article VI Section 8)
- ↑ NMOneSource.com, "Current New Mexico Statutes Annotated 1978," accessed September 2, 2021 (Chapter 34 Article 2)
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Constitution," accessed March 29, 2024 (Article VI Section 35)
Federal courts:
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of New Mexico • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of New Mexico
State courts:
New Mexico Supreme Court • New Mexico Court of Appeals • New Mexico District Courts • New Mexico Magistrate Court • New Mexico Municipal Courts • New Mexico Probate Courts • New Mexico Problem-Solving Courts • New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration Court • Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court
State resources:
Courts in New Mexico • New Mexico judicial elections • Judicial selection in New Mexico
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