Come November 6, Arizonans will have the chance to decide which state judges stay on the bench and which ones leave it.
It's something called the Judicial Performance Review. In layman's terms, that means, according to the Commission on Judicial Performance Review, the judges get judged.
Let's break this down further.
Judges are chosen through a merit selection, a system that finds the most qualified people, and then appointed by the governor in Arizona's three biggest counties.
But Arizona voters decide whether these judges keep their job in a judicial retention election. This vote differs from a regular vote in that judges are not on the ballot against an opponent. The vote is basically a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" from voters, according to the State Bar of Arizona.
A judge is retained if enough ballots are cast in favor of them staying.
Why should I care about judges?
Voters have access to an evaluation on each judge. These evaluations gauge a judge's integrity, legal ability, temperament, court management and communication skills.
FOR EVALUATIONS: www.azcourts.gov/jpr
Judges who fall short in these metrics could be removed from the bench, and that power lies with the Arizona voter.
So if you want say in who sits on the courts in your county, get out and VOTE.
For more information and evaluations of judges in each county visit Commission on Judicial Performance Review website.
Need more information on the midterm election happening Nov. 6? Check out the 12 News voter guide.