During this year's primary election on Aug. 18, you'll make decisions at the ballot box that will affect your day-to-day life. Some of the most important races you'll decide on are selecting and retaining judges — the people responsible for interpreting the laws, resolving disputes, and protecting your rights.
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Very few judicial races will appear on the general election ballot, because most are decided in the primary. Typically, only run-offs will head to November's ballots. In this primary, there are more than 40 circuit and county court races statewide, according to The Florida Bar.
There are more than 250 uncontested seats, which means those judges automatically retain their spot on the bench.
Florida is a closed primary state. But since judicial races are nonpartisan, all registered voters can choose a judge.
Judges can't make promises like other politicians because they must remain impartial to politics and make decisions based solely on the law in each case. So it doesn't matter what political party you belong to; you can make your voice heard.
However, nonpartisan races make it a little more difficult to decide which candidate you want to choose or keep.
In fact, less than half of Florida's voters feel confident in picking a judge, according to a 2024 Sachs Media survey cited by The Florida Bar.
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That's where the Florida Public Media Voter Guide comes in handy.
We reached out to the candidates to ask them some important questions about how they'll rule the bench — like what professional experiences they have, what role their personal values will play in decision-making, and how they'll avoid conflicts of interest.
When you go to the voter guide, you can put in your address and see what judicial races will be on your ballot (see the screenshot below). Or, browse the guide without filtering, and you can select a specific race to see which candidates are running and how they answered.
Types of judicial races
In judicial elections, you pick trial judges based on their experience, where two or more people qualify for the ballot.
In merit retention, you decide whether appellate judges and State Supreme Court justices appointed by the governor should stay in their positions.
A yes vote means they stay; no means they won't.
Judicial races are some of the only places where you get to make a real difference in our legal system and its effectiveness.
If you have any questions about state government or the legislative process, you can ask the Your Florida team by clicking here.
This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
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