1/ Going to start an intermittent thread about one of the hardest things for voters to figure out: Which judge to vote for.
2/ I think we're now all pretty clear on how important judges can be in shaping policy and dramatically affecting people's lives, yes? And that lower court judges can rise, if not to SCOTUS, to very, every important positions. Yes? So we all need to do a better job choosing them.
3/ Ok, so where are judges elected and why? The basics on this are laid out by @BrennanCenter for Justice, the go-to source. brennancenter.org/rethinking-jud… 
4/ Now those seven states that have "partisan" judicial elections are in some ways the easiest to figure out. The parties will make the endorsement case and etc. It's a travesty for the appearance of/real bias, to be sure.
5/ There's far more money going into all sorts of judicial elections. And like so many things, Brett Kavanaugh included, you can trace it back to Karl Rove. assets.motherjones.com/interactives/p…
6/ We did a big report on the dark money flowing into judicial elections in 2014, which had this awesome art motherjones.com/politics/2014/…
7/ Whether judges are elected, or appointed and stand for retention elections thereafter, there's more money going to all of it.
8/ Even lower court elections have seen huge amounts of money go into them.
9/ And in 26 states (as of 2014) there's little accountability.
10/ Anyway, if you live in a place with partisan elections, you'll be getting info from the parties (and outside groups) about why to support that candidate. Consume with plenty of grains of salt, to be sure, but at least those grains are...familiar?
11/ Here in California, however, we have a different problem. There's a lot of money being spent on elections, but it's very hard to see. The party voting guides, indeed almost all the voting guides, don't talk about the judges at all.
12/ So you, the voter, need to do your research before you go to the polls, because there's no info on these folks in your voting guides, or from the parties, and unless you appear before the court yourself, you likely no nothing about these selections. I hear you!
13/ Ok, so Ballotpedia can help with the basics. Let's look at the two women up for "retention elections" to the California Supreme Court. ballotpedia.org/California_Sup…
Judge Corrigan was appointed to the court in December 2005 Schwarzenegger. She was deemed a moderate when that happened. Poly Sci profs made a system to measure judges leanings, she is slightly more conservative than most CA judges:
15/ Judge Kruger was appointed by Gov Brown in 2014. She is the second African-American woman to serve on the CASupreme Court. Since this is her first retention election, that leaning analysis doesn't exist yet. latimes.com/local/lanow/la…
16/ Ok, so now you know the basics. You can search a judges name and things like "scandal" or "controversial ruling" or "donors" and find out, maybe, if there's anything really glaring. And if there are issues/cases you care about, search their history on that.
17/ Some newspapers do weigh in on judicial nominations. For example, the LAT is endorsing both the above candidates latimes.com/opinion/editor…
18/ But, depending on whether or not your paper weighs in, or if you agree with their stance, the further down the ticket on judicial elections, the harder if can be to sort out on the fly. So start now.
19/ And, word of warning, some judicial watchdog and other local groups do put out good, thoroughly researched guides, with interests declared where appropriate. But all that money I mentioned earlier? There's a lot of "fake news" sites designed to influence your vote.
20/ Anyway, take a look at your ballot, do a bit of Googling, and you'll probably feel pretty clear about your choices. Asking lawyers who appear before those courts can be helpful too. But get started!
21/ Since so many are asking ups/downs of appointed vs elected judges: Electing judges, arguably, is more democratic and less prone to cronyism, but tainted by partisanship/money. Retention elections are supposed to give voters a way to oust appointed judges who disappoint.But...
22/ In practice it is pretty hard to oust a sitting (certainly high court) judge unless they've really violated ethics or some such. So those governor-appointed judges tend to stick around.
23/ In California, we have a committee that (hopefully) helps the governor make good choices; and citizens do get to weigh in.
24/ Ok, happy voting.
