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Below is a summary of the national data collected on judicial diversity
in state courts. Data on diversity in individual states are available
here.
To view the entire dataset, please click here
to access the Microsoft® Excel spreadsheet. To download
and save a copy, right click on the link and select Save As.
(If you wish to view a copy of the corresponding code sheet,
it is available here.)
Frequently Asked Questions
- Of the judges of color currently presiding over
general jurisdiction state courts, what is the percentage of each
racial or ethnic group?
- Of the judges of color currently presiding over
general jurisdiction state courts, what is the percentage of each
racial or ethnic group separated by gender?
- What is the percentage of minority judges in each
state separated by race/ethnicity?
- What is the national percentage of minority judges
by type of court?
- What methods of selection are most frequently
used to appoint or elect minority judges to general jurisdiction
state courts?
- What methods of selections are most frequently
used for interim appointments or elections of minority judges
to general jurisdiction state courts?
- In states where judges are chosen by gubernatorial
appointment, what are the political parties of those governors
appointing minority judges?
- In states where judges are chosen by gubernatorial
appointment, what are the appointive methods used by political
party of the appointing governor?
- What is the breakdown by geographic basis of minority
judges who serve on general jurisdiction state courts?
1. Of the judges of color currently presiding
over general jurisdiction state courts, what is the percentage of
each racial or ethnic group?
| Race/Ethnicity |
Number |
Percentage |
| African American |
665 |
58.1% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander |
122 |
10.7% |
| Latina/o |
320 |
28.0% |
| Native American |
13 |
1.1% |
| Other |
24 |
2.1% |
| Total |
1,144 |
100.0% |
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2. Of the judges of color currently presiding
over general jurisdiction state courts, what is the percentage of
each racial or ethnic group separated by gender?
| Race/Ethnicity |
Male |
Female |
Total1 |
| African American |
63.2%
(419) |
36.8%
(244) |
58.1%
(663) |
| Asian/Pacific Islander |
62.5%
(75) |
37.5%
(45) |
10.7%
(120) |
| Latina/o |
71.9%
(230) |
28.1%
(90) |
28.0%
(320) |
| Native American |
76.9%
(10) |
23.1%
(3) |
1.1%
(13) |
| Other |
79.2%
(19) |
20.8%
(5) |
2.1%
(24) |
| Total |
66.1%
(753) |
33.9%
(387) |
100.0%
(1,140) |
1These figures pertain to the general jurisdiction courts.
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3. What is the percentage of minority judges
in each state separated by race/ethnicity?
| State |
African American |
Asian/Pacific Islander |
Latina/o |
Native American |
Other |
Total Percentage3 |
| Alabama |
10 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6.2 (159) |
| Alaska |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
5.0 (40) |
| Arizona |
6 |
5 |
20 |
1 |
0 |
17.2 (186) |
| Arkansas |
15 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
11.2 (134) |
| California |
72 |
56 |
87 |
2 |
20 |
14.7 (1,611) |
| Colorado |
5 |
1 |
13 |
0 |
0 |
12.3 (155) |
| Connecticut |
17 |
1 |
5 |
0 |
0 |
11.7 (196) |
| Delaware |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6.9 (29) |
| Florida |
30 |
0 |
34 |
1 |
0 |
10.9 (596) |
| Georgia |
20 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
9.7 (207) |
| Hawaii2 |
0 |
28 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
51.9 (54) |
| Idaho |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2.1 (47) |
| Illinois2 |
75 |
4 |
11 |
0 |
0 |
9.4 (958) |
| Indiana |
11 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
4.8 (314) |
| Iowa |
6 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2.3 (304) |
| Kansas2 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2.0 (251) |
| Kentucky |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3.1 (128) |
| Louisiana |
49 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
11.6 (421) |
| Maine |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (56) |
| Maryland |
28 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
16.4 (177) |
| Massachusetts |
8 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
10.7 (103) |
| Michigan |
32 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
14.0 (251) |
| Minnesota |
9 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
4.0 (297) |
| Mississippi |
10 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
8.9 (112) |
| Missouri |
23 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
7.5 (28) |
| Montana |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (49) |
| Nebraska |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (68) |
| Nevada |
2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
4.8 (63) |
| New Hampshire |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (34) |
| New Jersey |
30 |
2 |
19 |
0 |
0 |
10.6 (482) |
| New Mexico |
2 |
0 |
17 |
1 |
0 |
23.0 (87) |
| New York2 |
54 |
6 |
24 |
0 |
0 |
14.6 (574) |
| North Carolina |
20 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
15.9 (138) |
| North Dakota |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2.1 (47) |
| Ohio2 |
13 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
3.3 (450) |
| Oklahoma2 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
7.0 (100) |
| Oregon |
1 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
3.2 (186) |
| Pennsylvania2 |
23 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
5.7 (452) |
| Rhode Island |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7.4 (27) |
| South Carolina |
7 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
10.6 (66) |
| South Dakota |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (43) |
| Tennessee |
11 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7.4 (149) |
| Texas |
17 |
2 |
59 |
3 |
4 |
16.6 (512) |
| Utah |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
6.1 (82) |
| Vermont |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (47) |
| Virginia |
20 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
11.9 (168) |
| Washington |
14 |
5 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
11.2 (206) |
| West Virginia |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2.8 (70) |
| Wisconsin |
6 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3.8 (10) |
| Wyoming |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 (25) |
| Total |
665 |
122 |
320 |
13 |
24 |
1,144 |
2The data for this state is based, for the most part,
on 2001 figures.
3The figure in parentheses is the total number of authorized
judgeships in the state for the general jurisdiction appellate and
trial court bench.
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4. What is the national percentage of minority
judges by type of court?
| Type of Court4 |
African American |
Asian/Pacific Islander |
Latina/o |
Native American |
Other |
Total5 |
| State Supreme Court |
5.9%
(20) |
1.5%
(5) |
2.4%
(8) |
0 |
0 |
9.7%
(33) |
| Intermediate Appellate Court |
6.3%
(60) |
1.4%
(13) |
2.6%
(25) |
0.2%
(2) |
0.2%
(2) |
10.6%
(102) |
| General Jurisdiction Trial Court |
5.3%
(585) |
0.9%
(104) |
2.6%
(287) |
0.1%
(11) |
0.2%
(22) |
9.0%
(1,009) |
| Total |
5.9%
(665) |
1.1%
(122) |
2.8%
(320) |
0.1%
(13) |
0.2%
(24) |
10.1%
(1,144) |
4The total number of state supreme court authorized
judgeships is 340. The total number of authorized intermediate appellate
court judgeships is 958. The total number of authorized general
jurisdiction trial court judgeships is 10,046. The total number
of authorized general jurisdiction appellate and trial court judgeships
is 11,344.
5The total percentage is calculated by dividing the
total number of judges of color by the total number of authorized
judgeships for the three levels of courts addressed in this report.
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5. What methods of selection are most frequently
used to appoint or elect minority judges to general jurisdiction
state courts?
| Method of Selection |
Percent6 |
| Partisan Election |
29.9 (338) |
| Nonpartisan Election |
39.1 (442) |
| Gubernatorial Appointment (GA) |
2.2 (25) |
| GA with Commission |
12.6 (142) |
| GA with or without Commission or with some form of Legislative
Approval |
11.8 (134) |
| Legislative Election |
2.4 (27) |
| Supreme Court Appointment |
0.4 (4) |
| General Jurisdiction Trial Court Appointment |
2.0 (23) |
6Missing data for 13 judges.
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6. What methods of selections are most
frequently used for interim appointments or elections of minority
judges to general jurisdiction state courts?
| Method of Selection |
Percent7 |
| Partisan Election |
0 |
| Nonpartisan Election |
1.2 (13) |
| Gubernatorial Appointment (GA) |
31.0 (341) |
| GA with Commission |
24.7 (272) |
| GA with or without Commission or with some form of Legislative
Approval |
27.7 (305) |
| Legislative Election |
2.5 (27) |
| Supreme Court Appointment |
10.8 (119) |
| General Jurisdiction Trial Court Appointment |
2.0 (22) |
7Missing data for 44 judges.
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7. In states where judges are chosen by
gubernatorial appointment, what are the political parties of those
governors appointing minority judges?
| Party of Governor |
Percentage |
| Republican |
38.3 (98) |
| Democrat |
60.2 (154) |
| Independent/Reform |
0.8 (2) |
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8. In states where judges are chosen by
gubernatorial appointment, what are the appointive methods used
by political party of the appointing governor?
| Selection Method |
Republican |
Democrat |
Other |
Total |
| Gubernatorial Appointment (GA) |
2.8 (7) |
4.0 (10) |
0 |
6.8 (17) |
| GA with Commission |
18.0 (45) |
23.2 (58) |
0.4 (1) |
41.6 (104) |
| GA with or without Commission and with some form of Legislative
Approval |
26.8 (67) |
22.8 (57) |
2.0 (5) |
51.6 (129) |
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9. What is the breakdown by geographic
basis of minority judges who serve on general jurisdiction state
courts?
| Geographic Basis of Selection |
Percentage8 |
| Circuit |
23.0 (260) |
| District |
32.3 (365) |
| County |
29.9 (338) |
| Statewide |
14.4 (163) |
| Subcircuits/Subdistricts |
.3 (3) |
8Missing data for 15 judges.
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