Each election year, Iowans have an opportunity to vote on judges who are near the end of their term. Unlike most other persons named on the ballot, judges do not run against an opponent. Rather, the public is asked to vote whether or not to retain the judge for another term. The following information was prepared to help citizens learn more about the retention election process. A retention election is quite different from the typical election process involving two or more candidates running against each other for the same office.
Retention elections are non-partisan and uncontested.
If the judge receives a simple majority of votes cast, the judge will continue to hold office for another term. The length of the term varies according to the type of judgeship. Under this system, judges are appointed by the governor from a group of nominees chosen by a nominating commission. A retention election is one of the components of a traditional merit selection process. The retention election provides some degree of citizen oversight and accountability.