Colorado Supreme Court Justices Melissa Hart and Carlos Armando Samour Jr. are standing for retention election on November 3, 2020. Both justices were appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D).
Currently, six of the seven justices on the court were appointed by a Democratic governor. Of those, five were appointed by Hickenlooper.
• Brian Boatright Appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) in 2011
• Nathan Coats Appointed by Gov. Bill Owens (R) in 2000
• Richard Gabriel Appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) in 2015
• Melissa Hart Appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) in 2017
• William W. Hood Appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) in 2014
• Monica Márquez Appointed by Gov. Bill Ritter (D) in 2010
• Carlos Armando Samour Jr. Appointed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) in 2018
The governor appoints justices to the court from a shortlist of two or three names assembled by the Colorado Judicial Nominating Convention. The convention is composed of 15 voting members. Eight are non-lawyers appointed by the governor and seven are lawyers jointly appointed by the governor, attorney general, and chief justice. No more than half the members of the committee plus one may belong to the same political party.
New justices must face a retention election during the next general election after they serve at least two years on the bench. Justices then stand for retention every ten years. Since 2008, justices facing retention elections have won 98% of the time. In Colorado, there has not been a single justice that lost retention during this same time frame.
Additional reading
Judicial selection in Colorado
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