By Jeremy Duda | Arizona Mirror
Two Arizona counties might soon do away with electing judges and instead use the merit selection system already in place in the state’s three most populous counties.
The Arizona Supreme Court is predicting that Yavapai County is likely to have enough residents after the 2020 Census to automatically join the merit selection system.
And voters in Coconino County will decide in November whether to opt into the system, even though fewer than 150,000 people live there.
The Arizona Constitution requires the use of merit selection in counties with at least 250,000 people. Instead of running for election, judges in those counties must apply for vacant positions with a commission whose members are appointed by the governor and the State Bar of Arizona. That commission vets the applicants and sends the governor a list of at least three nominees, no more than two of whom can be from the same political party. The governor must select the new judge from that list.
