Judicial selection in Mississippi

Judicial selection in Mississippi
Mississippi Supreme Court
Method:	Nonpartisan election
Term:	8 years
Mississippi Court of Appeals
Method:	Nonpartisan election
Term:	8 years
Mississippi Circuit Court
Method:	Nonpartisan election
Term:	4 years
Mississippi Chancery Court
Method:	Nonpartisan election
Term:	4 years
Mississippi County Court
Method:	Nonpartisan election
Term:	4 years
Mississippi Justice Courts
Method:	Partisan election
Term:	4 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 Mississippi, including:

• Mississippi Supreme Court,
• Mississippi Court of Appeals,
• Mississippi Circuit Courts, and
• Limited jurisdiction courts

As of April 2025, the selection of the state court judges in Mississippi primarily occurred through the nonpartisan election of judges, with the exception of justice courts and municipal courts. In justice courts, judges were elected in partisan elections. In municipal courts, judges were appointed. Mississippi was the first state in the union to begin electing judges by popular vote.

Click here to notify us of changes to judicial selection methods in this state.

Mississippi Supreme Court

See also: Mississippi Supreme Court

The nine justices on the Mississippi Supreme Court are elected to eight-year terms in nonpartisan elections. All candidates must run in the general election (as Mississippi holds no primary for judicial candidates) and must face re-election if they wish to serve again. For more information about these elections, visit the Mississippi judicial elections page.

Unlike most states, supreme court justices in Mississippi are elected to represent specific districts. The nine justices are divided among three supreme court districts (not to be confused with the 22 divisions of the circuit courts) and are voted into office by the residents of their respective regions. Only the states of Illinois, Kentucky, and Louisiana use a similar system.

Qualifications

To serve on this court, a judge must be:

• a qualified elector for and from the district in which election is sought;
• a minimum of 30 years old;
• a practicing attorney; and
• a state citizen for at least five years.

Chief justice

The court's chief justice is selected by seniority. He or she serves until retirement when the justice with the next most judicial experience becomes chief.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts

If a midterm vacancy occurs on the court, a temporary judge is named by the governor. Appointees serve out the remainder of their predecessor's unexpired term if four or fewer years of the term remain. If there are more than four years remaining, the appointee will run in the next general election, taking place nine months or more after the vacancy occurs. The winner of the election will serve the remainder of the term.

The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.

Mississippi Court of Appeals

See also: Mississippi Court of Appeals

The judges on the Mississippi Court of Appeals are elected to eight-year terms in nonpartisan elections. All candidates must run in the general election (as Mississippi holds no primary for judicial candidates) and must face re-election if they wish to serve again.

Qualifications

To serve on this court, a judge must be:

• a qualified elector for and from the district in which election is sought;
• a practicing attorney;
• a minimum of 30 years old; and
• a state citizen for at least five years.

Chief judge

The court's chief judge is selected by the chief justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court. They serve four-year terms.

Vacancies

If a midterm vacancy occurs on the court, a temporary judge is named by the governor. Appointees serve out the remainder of their predecessor's unexpired term if four or fewer years of the term remain. If there are more than four years remaining, the appointee will run in the next general election, taking place nine months or more after the vacancy occurs. The winner of the election will serve the remainder of the term.

Mississippi Circuit Court

See also: Mississippi Circuit Court

The judges on the Mississippi Circuit Courts are elected to four-year terms in nonpartisan elections. All candidates must run in the general election (as Mississippi holds no primary for judicial candidates) and must face re-election if they wish to serve again.

Qualifications

To serve on this court, a judge must be:

• a qualified elector for and from the district in which election is sought;
• a practicing attorney for at least five years;
• a minimum of 26 years old; and
• a state citizen for at least five years.

Vacancies

As with the supreme court, temporary vacancies are filled by gubernatorial appointment. Instead of serving out the duration of their predecessor's term, however, appointees will simply face re-election in the next general election taking place nine months or more after the appointment.

Limited jurisdiction courts

Mississippi has 4 type(s) of limited jurisdiction court(s): the Mississippi Chancery Court, Mississippi County Courts, Mississippi Justice Courts, and Mississippi municipal courts.

Mississippi Chancery Courts

See also: Mississippi Chancery Court

Judges of the Mississippi Chancery Court are each elected to four-year terms. The elections for this court are nonpartisan elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be at least 26 years old, have five years of experience as an attorney, and a state resident for five years.

Mississippi County Courts

See also: Mississippi County Courts

Judges of the Mississippi County Courts are each elected to four-year terms. The elections for this court are nonpartisan elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be at least 26 years old, a state resident for five years, and have five years of experience as an attorney.

Mississippi Justice Courts

See also: Mississippi Justice Courts

Judges of the Mississippi Justice Courts are each elected to four-year terms. The elections for this court are partisan elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be a qualified elector, a county or district resident for two years, have a high school diploma or equivalent, and completion of a training course and competency exam within six months of taking office.

Municipal Courts

See also: Mississippi municipal courts

Judges of the Mississippi municipal courts are each appointed to terms of varying lengths by the governing body of the municipality. To serve on this court in cities with a population exceeding 10,000 people, a judge must have a law degree.

History

Below is a timeline noting changes to judicial selection methods in Mississippi.

• 2002: The vacancy policy was changed, so that the governor's appointees for the supreme court and court of appeals had to finish the remainder of their predecessor's unexpired term if four years or less remained. Prior to the passage of this statute, appointees were required to run for election to keep the seat regardless of how much of the term remained.
• 1999: Individual and political action committee (PAC) campaign contributions for the supreme court and court of appeals were limited to $5,000. Contributions to candidates of all other courts were limited to $2,500, and more extensive financial disclosure was required. Also in 1999, the Nonpartisan Judicial Election Act was amended to prohibit political parties from contributing to or endorsing judicial candidates. Former Governor Fordice vetoed the bill in April 1998 but the legislature overrode the veto the following January. The amendment was ultimately ruled unconstitutional by a federal district court in October 2002.
• 1994: The Nonpartisan Judicial Election Act was put into place, barring candidates from “campaigning or qualifying for such an office based on party affiliation” and requiring that judicial candidates' names appear on the ballot without reference to a political party. Additionally, the number of justices on the newly-created court of appeals was increased from five to ten.
• 1993: The court of appeals was established, comprised of five justices.
• 1914: Established that supreme court justices were to be elected by the people to eight-year terms.
• 1890: Established that terms of circuit court judges were to be reduced from six years to four.
• 1868: Established that all judges were to be appointed by the governor with Senate approval. Terms of the supreme court justices were reduced to nine years, terms of circuit court judges were increased to six years, and terms of chancery court judges were reduced to four years.
• 1832: Mississippi became the first state in the union to begin electing judges by popular vote. Terms of the court of errors and appeals, and the chancery court were reduced to six years; terms of circuit court judges were reduced to four years.
• 1817: Established that all judges were to be appointed for life by both houses of the state General Assembly.

Courts in Mississippi

In Mississippi, there are two federal district courts, a state supreme court, a state court of appeals, and trial courts with both general and limited jurisdiction. These courts serve different purposes, which are outlined in the sections below.

Click a link for information about that court type.

• Federal courts
• State supreme court
• State court of appeals
• Trial courts

The image below depicts the flow of cases through Mississippi's state court system. Cases typically originate in the trial courts and can be appealed to courts higher up in the system.

The structure of Mississippi's state court system.

Selection of federal judges

United States district court judges, who are selected from each state, go through a different selection process from that of state judges.

The district courts are served by Article III federal judges, who are appointed for life during good behavior. They are usually first recommended by senators (or members of the House, occasionally). The President of the United States nominates judges, who must then be confirmed by the United States Senate in accordance with Article III of the United States Constitution.

In other states

Each state has a unique set of guidelines governing how they select judges at the state and local level. These methods of selection are:

Election

• Partisan election: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot alongside a label designating political party affiliation.
• Nonpartisan election: Judges are elected by the people, and candidates are listed on the ballot without a label designating party affiliation.
• Michigan method: State supreme court justices are selected through nonpartisan elections preceded by either partisan primaries or conventions.
• Retention election: A periodic process whereby voters are asked whether an incumbent judge should remain in office for another term. Judges are not selected for initial terms in office using this election method.

Assisted appointment

• Assisted appointment, also known as merit selection or the Missouri Plan: A nominating commission reviews the qualifications of judicial candidates and submits a list of names to the governor, who appoints a judge from the list. At the state supreme court level, this method is further divided into the following three types:
  • Bar-controlled commission: Members of the state Bar Association are responsible for electing a majority of the judicial nominating commission that sends the governor a list of nominees that they must choose from.
  • Governor-controlled commission: The governor is responsible for appointing a majority of the judicial nominating commission that sends the governor a list of nominees they must choose from.
  • Hybrid commission: The judicial nominating commission has no majority of members chosen by either the governor or the state bar association. These commissions determine membership in a variety of ways, but no institution or organization has a clear majority control.

Direct appointment

• Court appointment: Judges are selected by judges in the state judiciary.
• Gubernatorial appointment: Judges are appointed by the governor. In some cases, approval from the legislative body is required.
• Legislative election: Judges are selected by the state legislature.
• Municipal government selection: Judges are selected by the governing body of their municipality.

Click a state on the map below to explore judicial selection processes in that state.

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http://ballotpedia.org/Judicial_selection_in_STATE

See also

State courts	Appointment methods	Election methods
State supreme courts Intermediate appellate courts Trial courts	Assisted appointment Court appointment Gubernatorial appointment Legislative election Municipal government selection	Partisan election Nonpartisan election Michigan method

External links

• State of Mississippi Judiciary
• Mississippi Secretary of State, "Elections"
• American Judicature Society, "Judicial Selection in the States: Mississippi"

Footnotes

Mississippi courts

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Federal courts:

Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Mississippi, Southern District of Mississippi • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Mississippi, Southern District of Mississippi

State courts:

Mississippi Supreme Court • Mississippi Court of Appeals • Mississippi circuit courts • Mississippi Chancery Court • Mississippi county courts • Mississippi justice courts • Mississippi youth courts • Mississippi Municipal Courts

State resources:

Courts in Mississippi • Mississippi judicial elections • Judicial selection in Mississippi