Election

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  1. The judges of the supreme court, the court of appeals, and the court of criminal appeals shall be elected by the qualified voters of the state in a statewide retention election conducted in accordance with chapter 4, part 1 of this title, and any appointments to fill a vacancy or a full eight-year term shall be made in accordance with chapter 4, part 1 of this title.
  2. The chancellors, circuit court judges, criminal court judges, and judges of any other state trial court of record shall be elected by the qualified voters of their respective judicial districts, as provided in the general election law set forth in title 2, and any appointments due to a vacancy in any of these offices shall be made in accordance with chapter 4, part 3 of this title.

Code 1858, §§ 307, 308 (deriv. Const. 1834, art. 6, §§ 3, 4); Shan., § 374; mod. Code 1932, § 631; impl. am. Acts 1967, ch. 226, § 3; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 17-103; Acts 2016, ch. 528, § 6.

Compiler's Notes. The provision for election of court of appeals judges in this section may be affected by chapter 4 of this title concerning the selection of appellate court judges.

For the Preamble to the act concerning an orderly procedure for the appointment, confirmation, and retention of appellate court judges as required by Tennessee Constitution, Article VI, Section 3, please refer to Acts 2016, ch. 528.

Amendments. The 2016 amendment rewrote the section which read: “The judges of the supreme court, court of appeals and court of criminal appeals are elected by the qualified voters of the state at large; the chancellors, circuit judges and judges of special courts, by the qualified voters of the respective judicial districts and special judicial districts.”

Effective Dates. Acts 2016, ch. 528, § 23. January 28, 2016.

Cross-References. Appellate court nominating commission, title 17, ch. 4.

Election of judges, Tenn. Const., art. VI, §§ 3, 4.

Election of judges of court of criminal appeals, §16-5-103.

Election of judges of the supreme court, §§2-3-202,16-3-101.

Textbooks. Gibson's Suits in Chancery (7th ed., Inman), § 614.

Tennessee Jurisprudence, 16 Tenn. Juris., Judges, § 5.

Law Reviews.

Rookie Year on the Federal Bench (Hon. Ronald Lee Gilman), 36 No. 5 Tenn. B.J. 22 (2000).

The Judicial System in Tennessee and Potentialities for Reorganization — Judges in Tennessee (Elvin E. Overton), 82 Tenn. L. Rev. 514.

Cited: State ex rel. Smiley v. Glenn, 54 Tenn. 472, 1872 Tenn. LEXIS 75 (1872); Cousin v. Sundquist, 145 F.3d 818, 1998 FED App. 171P, 1998 U.S. App. LEXIS 10796 (6th Cir. Tenn. 1998), cert. denied, 525 U.S. 1138, 119 S. Ct. 1026, 143 L. Ed. 2d 37, 1999 U.S. LEXIS 1020 (U.S. Feb. 22, 1999); Green v. Jones, — S.W.3d —, 2012 Tenn. App. LEXIS 455 (Tenn. Ct. App. July 10, 2012).


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