Here's which southwest Missouri judges will be on the November ballot

Jordan Meier, Springfield News-Leader
·4 min read

Judges across Missouri, including some in the Springfield area, will be up for either re-election or retention when voters hit the polls on Nov. 8.

In most Missouri counties, circuit court judges and associate circuit court judges are elected and serve four-year terms and then have to run for re-election.

However, for the Missouri Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, and certain larger metropolitan areas, including Greene County, judges are appointed, not elected, as a part of the Non-Partisan Missouri Court Plan. Those judges are put to a retention vote after they are first appointed and then every six years following.

The judges appointed as a part of the Non-Partisan Missouri Court Plan are also evaluated by the Missouri Judicial Performance Review Committee before their retention vote, and the results of the committee's evaluations are made public to voters prior to the election.

“We want to make sure the people of Missouri have good judges who are fair, impartial, and skilled,” said Larry Tucker, chair of the statewide committee. “Our independent committee provides voters with extensive information about the performance of our judges up for retention to help them make informed decisions.”

In southwest Missouri, voters will be voting whether to retain two Missouri Supreme Court judges and two Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District judges. In Greene County, voters will also be casting their ballots on the retention of three Associate Circuit Court judges.

More:All 6 Greene County circuit court judges will be replaced. What's the impact?

All of the judges up for a retention vote were evaluated this year on whether or not they "substantially meet overall judicial performance standards,” and all of them did.

In addition to the retention votes, a number of associate and circuit court judges in other southwest Missouri counties are up for re-election or are running for the first time. Below is a list of all the judges that you may see on the ballot this November. (Note: all judges running for election in the following counties are unopposed in their races).

Missouri Supreme Court

  • Justice Zel Fischer [retention vote, appointed to Missouri Supreme Court in 2008, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

  • Justice Robin Ransom [retention vote, appointed to Missouri Supreme Court in 2021, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District

  • Judge Don Burrell [retention vote, appointed to Court of Appeals in 2008, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

  • Judge Jack Goodman [retention vote, appointed to Court of Appeal in 2020, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

Greene County (31st Judicial Circuit)

  • Judge Margaret Holden Palmietto [retention vote, appointed as Greene County Associate Judge Division 22 since 2015, retained in 2018, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

  • Judge Mark Powell [retention vote, elected as Greene County Associate Division 24 judge in 2000; retained in 2010, 2014 and 2018, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

  • Judge Todd Myers [retention vote, appointed as Greene County Associate Judge Division 25 in 2020, 2022 evaluation “Substantially MEETS overall judicial performance standards”]

Polk County (30th Judicial Circuit)

  • Jill Porter [first time running for Associate Judge Division 2]

  • Randolph Blosch [first time running for Associate Judge Division 3]

Dallas County (30th Judicial Circuit)

  • Judge Lisa Henderson [up for reelection, Dallas County Associate Judge since 2010]

Webster County (30th Judicial Circuit)

  • Justin Evans [defeated incumbent David Tunnell in primary, first time running for Associate Judge Division 2]

  • Judge Chuck Replogle [up for reelection, Webster County Associate Judge Division 3 since 2018]

Taney County (46th Judicial Circuit)

  • Judge Tiffany Yarnell [up for reelection, Taney County Associate Judge Division 1 since 2016]

  • Judge Eric Eighmy [up for reelection, Tanney County Associate Judge Division 2 since 2014]

Texas County (25th Judicial Circuit)

  • Judge John Beger [up for reelection, Texas County Circuit Court Judge since 2014]

  • Judge Douglas Gaston [up for reelection, Texas County Associate Court Judge since 2008]

Christian County (38th Judicial Circuit)

  • Judge Jessica Kruse [appointed to be Circuit Court Judge in 2021, first election as Circuit Court Judge]

  • Judge Steve Ward [appointed to Christian County Associate Court Division 3 in 2021 to replace Kruse, first election]

  • Judge Doug Bacon [up for reelection, Christian County Associate Judge Division 4 since 2014]

Jordan Meier covers public safety for the Springfield News-Leader. Contact her at jmeier@news-leader.com, or on Twitter @Jordan_Meier644.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: These judges will be on November ballot in southwest Missouri