Judges make decisions that affect people’s lives every day. Yet when judicial elections come around, voters often have remarkably little information about the candidates.
Unlike higher-profile political races, judicial elections receive relatively little attention. In California, these elections are nonpartisan, meaning candidates’ political party affiliations do not appear on the ballot. Voters are often left to piece together information about candidates scattered across court websites, professional biographies, and public records, making it difficult to evaluate their experience and qualifications.
That’s why we created the Trellis Judicial Voter Guide.
Drawing from our database of state trial court records, the guide brings together information about California judges in one accessible resource, helping voters learn more about the candidates on their ballots.
Voters can search for judges by name, court, or keyword, filter by ruling topic, and compare judges side by side. Each profile provides background on a judge’s professional experience and notable rulings, giving voters a closer look at the candidates beyond the information available on the ballot.
The people who interpret and apply the law shouldn’t be a mystery to the people who elect them. Our Judicial Voter Guide reflects Trellis’s founding mission to democratize access to the law.