Kansas voters to decide Aug. 4 whether to elect Supreme Court justices
Kansas voters will decide Tuesday, Aug. 4, whether to amend the state constitution to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices rather than continue the current system of nominations and gubernatorial appointments.
The proposed amendment is on the statewide primary-election ballot. It would give voters the right to elect justices to the seven-member Kansas Supreme Court, changing the method used to fill the court’s seats.
The measure has not been approved. As of Aug. 2, the outcome was not available; the immediate next step is the statewide vote on Aug. 4, 2026.
What would change
Kansas now uses a Supreme Court nominating commission and a gubernatorial appointment process for vacancies on the court. The proposed constitutional amendment would replace that selection system with elections by voters.
The change would not put all seven seats before voters at once. Under the Legislature’s proposed language, elections would be phased in over three election cycles.
Justice positions 1, 2 and 3 would be elected in 2028. Positions 4 and 5 would be elected in 2030, followed by positions 6 and 7 in 2032.
After those initial election cycles, elected justices would serve six-year terms under the proposal. The schedule is part of the proposed amendment, not a process already in effect.
Why the ballot question has drawn attention
The vote concerns the structure of judicial selection in Kansas: whether Supreme Court justices continue to reach the court through the current nominating and appointment system or are chosen directly by voters.
Supporters of elections have argued that an elected court would be more accountable to voters. Opponents have warned that direct elections could politicize judicial selection.
Associated Press reported that the proposal is tied to conservative dissatisfaction with Kansas Supreme Court decisions involving abortion, school funding and the death penalty. The report also said Americans for Prosperity had spent $935,000 to support the measure.
Those reported political arguments do not establish how future elections would change the court’s decisions or ideological makeup. Approval of the amendment would change the selection method; it would not itself guarantee a particular direction for the court.
Questions beyond the vote
The amendment’s effect on judicial party labels and campaign-finance rules is not settled by the available information. Those details depend on implementing legislation and possible later action by lawmakers or courts.
For voters, the question on Aug. 4 is narrower and immediate: whether to authorize elections for Kansas Supreme Court justices in place of the current nominating commission and gubernatorial appointment process.
If voters reject the amendment, the current selection system would remain in place. If they approve it, the proposal calls for the first elections—for positions 1, 2 and 3—to occur in 2028, followed by the remaining seats in 2030 and 2032.
Sources
- Proposed Constitutional Amendments, Kansas Secretary of State
- Proposed Constitutional Amendment—Direct Election of Supreme Court Judges, Kansas Legislature
- Republicans want voters to elect Kansas Supreme Court justices and move court to the right, Associated Press