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Judges appointed by Ron DeSantis
This page lists judges appointed by Ron DeSantis (R) during his term as governor of Florida. As of May 2024, the total number of DeSantis appointees was 118. For the full profile of DeSantis, click here.
As of January 2019, governors in Florida were responsible for appointing judges to the seven-member supreme court and 60-member appellate courts.
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population. Some Florida judges are outside of that coverage scope. As a result, this page does not provide an exhaustive list of all judges appointed by Gov. DeSantis.
Appointed judges
The tables below list the governor's appointees to the courts across the state. These lists are updated automatically with new appointments.
State Courts
Supreme Court
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
September 14, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
June 1, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
May 23, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
January 22, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
January 9, 2019 - December 6, 2019 |
|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
||
|
Florida Supreme Court |
September 1, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida Supreme Court |
January 14, 2019 - November 19, 2019 |
Court of Appeals
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Florida 1st District Court of Appeal |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 1st District Court of Appeal |
June 30, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 1st District Court of Appeal |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal |
July 29, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal |
July 29, 2020 - January 1, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal |
September 1, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th District Court of Appeal |
2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
2021 - January 1, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
2019 - January 1, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
April 17, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
2021 - January 1, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - 2023 |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
January 1, 2023 - May 24, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
September 5, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th District Court of Appeal |
2023 - Present |
Local Courts
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Bay County Court |
January 1, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Broward County Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Duval County Court |
2020 - 2021 |
|
|
Duval County Court |
July 1, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Duval County Court |
||
|
Duval County Court |
2021 - April 10, 2023 |
|
|
Duval County Court |
April 10, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Duval County Court |
2023 - Present |
|
|
Duval County Court |
May 12, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Escambia County Court |
October 12, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 10th Circuit Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 10th Circuit Court |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
January 3, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
March 27, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
August 29, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
May 30, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
January 13, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
September 20, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
March 27, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
December 17, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 11th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
January 1, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
March 29, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
2024 - Present |
|
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 13th Circuit Court |
2019 - January 3, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 14th Circuit Court |
April 29, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 15th Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 15th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 15th Circuit Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 17th Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 17th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 18th Circuit Court |
January 7, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 18th Circuit Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 1st Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 1st Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 20th Circuit Court |
October 5, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 2nd Circuit Court |
July 1, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 2nd Circuit Court |
November 5, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 2nd Circuit Court |
April 4, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
January 2, 2024 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
April 3, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
April 3, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
April 10, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 4th Circuit Court |
September 29, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th Circuit Court |
June 11, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 5th Circuit Court |
January 21, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th Circuit Court |
2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 6th Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th Circuit Court |
August 1, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th Circuit Court |
January 1, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 6th Circuit Court |
January 11, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 7th Circuit Court |
January 3, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
2021 - 2023 |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
May 3, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
September 20, 2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
February 10, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
February 22, 2021 - January 1, 2023 |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
2020 - 2023 |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
June 21, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
January 4, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
May 3, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
October 28, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
||
|
Florida 9th Circuit Court |
June 21, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
2024 - Present |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
2022 - 2022 |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
||
|
Hillsborough County Court |
||
|
Hillsborough County Court |
February 7, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
May 22, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Hillsborough County Court |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Lee County Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Leon County Court |
October 5, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Marion County Court |
2021 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2023 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2020 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2020 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2024 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
||
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
December 13, 2022 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
||
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
||
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
May 13, 2022 - February 19, 2024 |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
December 16, 2019 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
||
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2021 - 2023 |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
||
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2019 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
May 15, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
2024 - Present |
|
|
Miami-Dade County Court |
May 15, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Okaloosa County Court |
||
|
Orange County Court |
October 25, 2023 - Present |
|
|
Orange County Court |
2020 - 2023 |
|
|
Orange County Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Orange County Court |
2024 - Present |
|
|
Orange County Court |
2020 - May 1, 2023 |
|
|
Orange County Court |
2021 - January 3, 2022 |
|
|
Orange County Court |
2024 - Present |
|
|
Palm Beach County Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Palm Beach County Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Palm Beach County Court |
2022 - Present |
|
|
Pinellas County Court |
October 1, 2020 - Present |
|
|
Pinellas County Court |
January 1, 2021 - January 7, 2022 |
|
|
Pinellas County Court |
2020 - Present |
|
|
Polk County Court |
Judicial selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Florida
| Judicial selection in Florida | |
 | |
| Florida Supreme Court | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Florida District Courts of Appeal | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Florida Circuit Court | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Florida County Court | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 6 years |
Judicial selection refers to the process used to select judges for courts. At the state level, methods of judicial selection vary substantially in the United States, and in some cases between different court types within a state. There are six primary types of judicial selection: partisan and nonpartisan elections, the Michigan method, assisted appointment, gubernatorial appointment, and legislative elections. To read more about how these selection methods are used across the country, click here.
This article covers how state court judges are selected in Florida, including:
- Florida Supreme Court,
- Florida District Courts of Appeal,
- Florida Circuit Court, and
- Limited jurisdiction courts
As of March 2023, judges for the Florida Supreme Court and Florida District Courts of Appeal were selected through the assisted appointment method, where the governor selects a nominee from a list provided by a nominating commission. Judges for the Florida Circuit Courts and Florida County Courts were selected through nonpartisan elections.
Click here to notify us of changes to judicial selection methods in this state.
| Appellate state court selection in the United States, by general selection method[1] |
|---|
|
|
| State courts and their selection methods across the U.S., including the District of Columbia[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Supreme Court (of 53)[2] | Courts of Appeal (of 46) | Trial Courts (of 147) |
| Partisan elections (PE) | 8 | 6 | 39 |
| Nonpartisan elections (NPE) | 13 | 16 | 34 |
| Legislative elections (LE) | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| Gubernatorial appointment of judges (GA) | 5 | 3 | 6 |
| Assisted appointment (AA) | 22 | 18 | 46 |
| Combination or other | 3[3] | 1[4] | 17[5] |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Judicial appointments 'Florida'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
State profile
| Demographic data for Florida | ||
|---|---|---|
| Florida | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 20,244,914 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 53,625 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 76% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 16.1% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2.6% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.4% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 23.7% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 86.9% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 27.3% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $47,507 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 19.8% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Florida. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Florida
Florida voted Republican in four out of the six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, four are located in Florida, accounting for 1.94 percent of the total pivot counties.[6]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Florida had three Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 1.66 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respsectively.
More Florida coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Florida
- United States congressional delegations from Florida
- Public policy in Florida
- Influencers in Florida
- Florida fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection," archived February 2, 2015
- ↑ Both Oklahoma and Texas have two state supreme courts: one for civil matters and one for criminal matters.
- ↑ Michigan and Ohio use nonpartisan general elections with candidates selected through partisan primaries or conventions. In the District of Columbia, judges are selected in the same manner as federal judges.
- ↑ Judges of the North Dakota Court of Appeals are appointed on an as-needed basis by the supreme court justices.
- ↑ Most courts that use combination/alternative methods (for example, mayoral appointment) are local level courts. These courts are often governed by selection guidelines that are unique to their specific region.
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
Federal courts:
Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida
State courts:
Florida Supreme Court • Florida District Courts of Appeal • Florida Circuit Court • Florida County Court
State resources:
Courts in Florida • Florida judicial elections • Judicial selection in Florida
