Governor Jan Brewer will directly appoint a new Superior Court judge for Pinal County after Democrats showed no interest in the Republican-trending county.
The county elected its judges before passing the 250,000 population move to the merit-retention system in 2010.
The transition has been difficult and time consuming, requiring the formation of a host of committees to pick nominees for the Commission on Trial Court Appointments. The commission’s job is to vet the judicial applicants and send the governor at least three nominees, no more than two of them from the same party. If the commission doesn’t send her nominees within 60 days of the vacancy, Brewer can bypass the process and make an appointment.
When no Dems applied for the vacancy, the Arizona Supreme Court extended the deadline. Court spokeswoman Jennifer Liewer told the Yellow Sheet Report the court is no longer involved in the process for the vacancy and has sent all of the applications to Brewer, who’s expected to make the appointment soon.
Information from the Yellow Sheet Report
