How Kansas Supreme Court Justices Are Appointed
The Kansas Supreme Court is the state's highest court. When a vacancy occurs, Kansas uses a merit selection process designed to evaluate applicants before an appointment is made.
Step 1: A Vacancy Occurs
A vacancy may result from retirement, resignation, death, or another justice leaving office.
Step 2: The Nominating Commission Reviews Applicants
A nine-member Kansas Supreme Court Nominating Commission accepts applications, reviews qualifications, interviews candidates, and selects three finalists.
The commission consists of:
Five attorneys, elected by lawyers in Kansas. The chairman is elected by the entire members of the Kansas Bar Association. The remaining four are elected by members of the bar for each of Kansas’s U.S. congressional districts.
Four non-attorneys, appointed by the Governor—one from each of Kansas's four U.S. congressional districts.
Therefore, there is one attorney chairman, and one attorney and one non-attorney from each U.S. congressional district.
Step 3: The Governor Makes the Appointment
The commission submits the names of the three finalists to the Governor.
The Governor must appoint one of those three nominees. The Governor cannot appoint someone who was not selected by the commission. If the Governor does not make an appointment within 60 days, the Chief Justice makes the appointment from the same list.
Step 4: The Justice Serves
After appointment, the justice begins serving immediately.
Rather than running in contested elections, the justice later appears on the ballot in a retention election, where Kansas voters cast a simple Yes or No vote on whether the justice should remain in office. If retained, the justice serves another six-year term.
Why Is This Process Debated?
Supporters of the current system argue that it emphasizes professional qualifications and judicial independence.
Critics argue that attorneys have too much influence because they elect five of the nine members of the nominating commission, giving lawyers a majority of the votes that determine the three finalists presented to the Governor.
At a Glance
9-member nominating commission
5 attorneys elected by lawyers
4 non-attorneys appointed by the Governor
Commission selects 3 finalists
Governor appoints 1 of the 3
Justice later stands in statewide retention elections every six years