The purpose of this page of the guide is to provide general information on the judicial branch of Michigan and where those primary sources can be found. A flowchart of the state's court system highlights how cases are presented to its designated court.
This page is also intended to illustrate the political affiliation of judges within the state and federal court systems and to dispel myths and disinformation that the courts were politically stacked against ruling in favor of Donald Trump. I provided links to the laws of Michigan state for the election of judges to also highlight their history and ruling records. I also linked the cases that courts adjudicated related to the 2020 election. For the full list of election litigation, see the 'Lawsuit Verdicts' page. In addition, see my 'Disclaimer Note' for additional reasonings and thought processes on how political affiliation was determined.
Lastly, only the judges related to lawsuits of the 2020 election are displayed. Michigan has over 200 district court judges and would serve no purpose to look at all of the political affiliations when the scope of this research is the 2020 Presidental Election.
Judges in Michigan participate in nonpartisan elections.
All judges wishing to serve again must run for re-election at the end of their terms.[1]Across the state's appellate and trial courts, there are seven supreme court justices, 28 courts of appeals judges, and 221 district court judges. Under the Michigan Constitution, judges' terms end, and new terms begin at noon on January 1 following their election.
Michigan is one of 21 states that have nonpartisan or partisan judicial elections. There are also 17 states with judicial retention elections at some or all levels of state courts and three states with partisan judicial elections followed by retention elections.
| Supreme Court | Court of Appeals | Circuit Court | District Court | Probate Court |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan election - Eight-year terms | Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms | Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms | Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms | Nonpartisan election - Six-year terms |
*Chart is taken from Ballotpedia - Michigan Judicial Selection and any discrepancies in content are attributed to the source.
If there are more than twice the number of candidates then there are judgeships up for election, the race will appear on the primary election ballot. In the nonpartisan primary, the two candidates who receive the greatest number of votes advance to the general election.
If there are not more than twice the amount of candidates than there are persons to be elected, the race will not appear on the primary election ballot, but only on the general election ballot.[1]
If two or more candidates in a race receive the same number of votes, the election is to be decided by lot. In a process run by a county clerk, the candidates choose slips of paper from a box that say either "elected" or "not elected".[2]*
Supreme Court candidates run in the general election. Incumbents may run for re-election by filing with the secretary of state no less than 180 days before the end of the term.[3] Although the judicial elections are nonpartisan, and party information is not displayed on the ballot, candidates for the Michigan Supreme Court are nominated at party conventions.[4] Corresponding candidates are nominated at the Democratic Party, Republican Party, or minor party conventions.[5]*
The chief justice of the court serves a two-year term and is elected by his or her fellow justices.[1]
In order to be elected to this court, a judge must:
Sitting judges who reach age 70 are allowed to serve out the remainder of their term.[2]*
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a temporary replacement to serve until the next general election. At the governor's request, the state bar's standing committee on judicial qualifications interviews evaluates, and rates all candidates, submitting a confidential report to the governor. However, the governor is not required to request candidates from the committee, nor is the governor bound by the committee's evaluations.[1]*
*Taken from Ballotpedia - Judicial selection in Michigan
The 28 judges of the Michigan Court of Appeals and the 221 judges of the Michigan Circuit Courts are selected in an identical manner, each serving six-year terms. As the supreme court justices, they are chosen in nonpartisan elections and must face re-election if they wish to remain on the court. Unlike the supreme court, however, candidates are placed on the ballot via nonpartisan primaries or by nominating petitions.[1]*
The chief judges of the appeals and circuit courts are selected by supreme court appointment to terms lasting two years.[1]*
To be elected to either of these courts, a judge must:
Sitting judges who reach age 70 are allowed to serve out the remainder of their term.[2]*
The process for filling vacancies on the appeals and circuit courts is identical to that used by the supreme court. With the assistance of the judicial qualifications committee, the governor names a replacement to serve until the next general election.[1]*
*Taken from Ballotpedia - Michigan Court of Appeals
Michigan's limited jurisdiction courts (the district courts, probate courts and municipal courts) vary in their selection processes.[3]*
Judges of the Michigan District Courts are each elected to six-year terms.[4] The elections for this court are nonpartisan contested elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be a qualified elector of the district, licensed to practice law in the state, under the age of 70, and have five years of experience practicing law.*
Judges of the Michigan Probate Courts are each elected to six-year terms.[5] The elections for this court are nonpartisan contested elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be a qualified elector of the district, licensed to practice law in the state, under the age of 70, and have five years of experience practicing law.*
Judges of the Michigan Juvenile Courts are each elected to four-year terms.[6] The elections for this court are nonpartisan contested elections. To serve on this court, a judge must be a qualified elector of the district, licensed to practice law in the state, and under the age of 70.*
American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Michigan," archived October 2, 2014
↑ Jump up to:2.0 2.1 Michigan Daily, "Washtenaw County judge announces early retirement," May 1, 2014
Jump up↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Michigan," archived October 2, 2014
Jump up↑ Michigan Department of State, "Judge of the District Court," accessed July 29, 2014
Jump up↑ Michigan Department of State, "Judge of the Probate Court," accessed July 29, 2014
Jump up↑ City of Grosse Pointe Woods, "Municipal Court," accessed July 29, 2014
Jump up↑ American Judicature Society, "History of Reform Efforts: Michigan," archived October 2, 2014
Jump up↑ US Courts, "FAQ: Federal Judges," accessed March 26, 2015
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Political Affiliation |
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Republican |
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Republican |
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Republican |
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Republican |
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Republican |
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Democrat |
The justices in the table below are the judges that presided over the 2020 election lawsuits.
| Judge | Political Affiliation |
| Stephen Borrello | Democrat |
| Patrick Meter | Republican |
| Amy Ronayne Krause | Democrat |
The following are all of the justices for the Michigan Court of Appeals:
Karen M. Fort Hood, Kirsten Frank Kelly, Peter D. O’Connell (retired 2019), David H. Sawyer, Chief Judge Christopher M. Murray, Chief Judge Pro Tem Jane M. Beckering, William B. Murphy (retired 2019), Jane E. Markey, Stephen L. Borrello, Elizabeth L. Gleicher, Patrick M. Meter (retired 2021), Cynthia Diane Stephens, Michael J. Kelly, Amy Ronayne Krause, Mark T. Boonstra, Douglas B. Shapiro, Colleen A. O’Brien, Brock A. Swartzle, Michael F. Gadola, Michael J. Riordan, Thomas C. Cameron, Jonathan Tukel, James Robert Redford, Anica Letica, Mark J. Cavanagh, Kathleen Jansen, Deborah A. Servitto, Michelle M. Rick.
A Note About This Page
Determining the political affiliation of a judge can be challenging since most states run nonpartisan elections for selections of their state judges. Federal judges are appointed by the President of the United States, which many assume the political affiliation of the judge is the same as the President's and is not always the case.
On this libguide, I determined the political affiliation of judges through a few criteria measures:
1. They are on record for running in a partisan election.
2. They are on record for donating to a particular political affiliated party group and/or another election campaign.
3. The judge is quoted in a credible and/or primary resource media source they associate with a political ideology as a private citizen.
For several state and federal judges a concrete political party could not be identified by the above criteria therefore for federal judges, I identified them with the political party of the president who nominated them. This is for two reasons:
1. The general public often associates the political affiliation of a judge based on that measurement anyway
2. It is very likely that they lean that way in political ideology.
There were several in my research that literally nothing could be found about their political affiliations and ideologies and were often described by peers as being very independent. In these cases, I labeled them independent for their extensive reputation for balanced, fair, and independent judgments and opinions, and the lack of evidence that they firmly associate with a political party.
NOTE: I am NOT declaring that if a judge is a registered democrat or republican, they cannot make fair and balanced decisions in the courts they preside over. Actually, I am trying to prove the opposite. My whole point in associating judges with a party is to demonstrate that many judges who publically identify as Republican, decided against the Donald Trump campaign in state and federal lawsuits, to further provide evidence that the 2020 Presidential Election was not "rigged" and the courts are not filled with Democrats who dismissed cases so that Biden could "steal the election."
If you should have credible and authoritative evidence that a judge that is mentioned on this libguide is affiliated with the wrong party, please feel free to contact me and send the information. I want to get information correct and welcome corrections.
