Running for judicial office means asking voters to trust your judgment, temperament and experience while campaigning under rules that often differ from those for other elected offices. What you can say, how you raise money and even how you describe your candidacy may depend on the rules in your state. At the same time, many voters reach the judicial races on their ballot with very little information about the candidates.
Your campaign website gives them one reliable place to learn who you are and why you're qualified. It also gives bar associations, editorial boards, voter-guide publishers, attorneys, local officials and others a clear source for your background, experience and endorsements instead of making them piece that information together from court records, social media and search results.
Campaign Partner brings it all together: your qualifications, legal experience, judicial philosophy, endorsements, committee donations, volunteer signups, yard sign requests, events and voter information - on a website you can update yourself.
How judicial races are different
What that means for your website
Judicial conduct rules can limit campaign statements, particularly pledges, promises or commitments about cases or issues that may come before the court.
Explain your experience, approach to the job and judicial philosophy in clear language while staying within the conduct rules that apply to your race.
Voters often know far less about judicial candidates than they do about candidates for higher-profile offices.
Lead with your qualifications: your years of practice, legal experience, courts and case types, public service and ties to the community.
Many jurisdictions restrict candidates from personally soliciting contributions, so fundraising runs through a campaign committee.
Give voters ways to donate through your committee, volunteer or request a yard sign - and keep the finance records the committee has to report.
Bar associations, newspapers and civic organizations may evaluate judicial candidates or publish questionnaires and voter guides.
Give them a reliable source for your biography, experience, endorsements and ratings.
Getting on the Ballot for a Judicial Seat
The requirements for running for judicial office vary considerably by state and by court. Depending on the race, qualifying may involve filing a declaration of candidacy, paying a filing fee, collecting petition signatures, meeting residency requirements or having been admitted to the bar for a certain number of years. Judges appointed to fill vacancies may later face a retention election or contested election on a schedule established by state law.
Start early by confirming the filing office, deadlines, fees and petition requirements for your seat. If signatures are required, aim comfortably above the minimum so that invalid or challenged signatures don't put your candidacy at risk.
Campaign finance requirements can also begin before your name appears on the ballot. Before raising or spending money, find out whether you need to register a committee, designate a treasurer or begin filing disclosure reports. Campaign Partner includes campaign finance tracking tools to help you keep those records organized.
Our free state election guide can help you find your state's election authority and official candidate resources. Because filing requirements and deadlines can change from one election cycle to the next, always confirm the current rules with the office that administers your election.
Campaigning Within the Code of Judicial Conduct
Judicial campaigns come with rules that don't apply in quite the same way to most other political campaigns. The details vary by state, but judicial candidates generally need to be especially careful about statements that could be understood as commitments about cases, controversies or issues they may later be asked to decide.
Fundraising can have additional restrictions as well. Many jurisdictions prohibit judicial candidates from personally soliciting campaign contributions and instead require fundraising to be handled through a campaign committee. Rules governing partisan activity, endorsements, campaign statements and required disclaimers can also vary.
That makes it important to write your website with the rules for your race in mind from the beginning. Focus on your qualifications, experience, record and approach to the job without suggesting that you've already decided how you would rule in future cases.
Before publishing, review the rules that apply in your state and confirm anything unclear with the appropriate judicial conduct commission, ethics advisory body or election authority. Campaign Partner does not provide legal advice.
Trial Court, Appellate Court, or Retention Election?
The fundamentals of a judicial campaign are similar at every level: introduce yourself to voters, explain your qualifications and give people a reason to learn more about your candidacy. But the size of the electorate and the nature of the campaign can change considerably depending on the court.
Trial court judges
District, circuit, superior, county and municipal court races are often decided by voters in a single county, district or city. That makes personal outreach to the legal community and the broader community especially important. Your website gives everyone you meet a place to learn more, volunteer, request a sign or share your campaign with someone else.
Appellate and supreme court justices
An appellate or supreme court race may cover several counties or an entire state. Reaching that larger electorate usually means relying on a broader mix of advertising, mail, events, media coverage and online outreach. Your website gives all of those efforts one consistent destination where voters, reporters and potential supporters can learn more.
Magistrates and justices of the peace
Magistrate and justice of the peace races are often highly local. Some are partisan and others are not, depending on the state. Personal connections may matter, but your website helps introduce you to the voters who don't already know you.
Retention elections
A retention election works differently from a traditional contested race: voters decide whether a sitting judge should remain in office rather than choosing between two candidates. A clear website gives voters one place to review your experience, record and endorsements and gives organizations preparing voter guides a reliable source for information about you.
A Site That Looks Like Your Campaign
Your website should look like the same campaign voters see on your signs, mail and social media. If you already have a logo or yard-sign design, upload it and use those colors throughout your site. Starting from scratch? Our built-in Logo Designer can help you create and refine a campaign logo.
Every site also includes a QR code generator, so you can send voters directly from signs, palm cards and mail to your website. And if you're looking for ideas, browse our political website templates to see the different styles you can create.
Everything your campaign
website needs
Every Campaign Partner site includes the essential pages and tools you need to build a complete campaign presence online:
Home page with slideshow, news feed, fundraising & email signup
About the Candidate
Endorsement pages
Online donations page for your campaign committee
Volunteer signup form
Yard sign request form
Photo galleries
News page
Pages for your experience, qualifications & judicial philosophy
Events & RSVP
Contact form
Voter registration info
Questions About Running for Judge
What can a judicial candidate say on a campaign website?
You can use your website to explain your qualifications, legal experience, community involvement, record and judicial philosophy. Judicial conduct rules may restrict statements that amount to pledges, promises or commitments about cases or issues you could later be asked to decide, and additional rules may apply to partisan activity, endorsements or comments about opponents.
Because those rules vary by state, review the code that applies to your race and confirm anything unclear with your state's judicial conduct or ethics authority before publishing.
Can a judicial candidate accept online donations?
In many jurisdictions, yes - but fundraising is typically handled through a campaign committee rather than by the candidate personally. Contribution limits, disclosure requirements, fundraising periods and restrictions on who may contribute vary by state.
Campaign Partner includes an online donation page and campaign finance tracking tools. Before accepting contributions, confirm the requirements for your race with the appropriate election and judicial conduct authorities.
How much does a judicial campaign cost?
There isn't one meaningful average. A county trial-court race and a statewide appellate race can have very different budgets.
Typical expenses may include filing or petition costs, mail, signs, events, advertising and a campaign website. One of the best ways to estimate the cost of your own race is to review campaign finance reports from recent elections for the same seat or a comparable court.
Our state election information guide can help you find the appropriate election authority for your state. Campaign Partner starts at $29/month and includes your website, hosting and campaign tools.
Are judicial elections partisan?
It depends on the state and, in some cases, the court. Judicial selection systems include partisan elections, nonpartisan elections and retention elections, and a single state may use different methods for different courts.
Whatever system applies to your race, your website gives voters a place to learn about your background, qualifications and experience before they reach the judicial section of the ballot.
Can I list endorsements on a judicial campaign website?
Often, yes, although the rules governing endorsements can vary by state and can be different for sitting judges and other judicial candidates.
Campaign Partner's endorsement pages let you organize endorsements by category, display the ones you choose and even allow supporters to submit an endorsement through your website. Before publishing endorsements, make sure they comply with the judicial conduct rules that apply to your race.
Do I need a website for a retention election?
A retention election gives voters a yes-or-no choice about whether a sitting judge should remain in office. Because there is no opposing candidate to create a traditional campaign contrast, voters may go looking for basic information about your experience and record.
A website gives them one reliable place to find it. It also gives organizations preparing voter guides and election coverage a source they can refer to.
When should I launch my campaign website?
Ideally, your website should be ready by the time you announce your candidacy or begin actively campaigning. That way, anyone who hears your name - whether through an announcement, petition drive, bar association evaluation, questionnaire or news story - immediately has somewhere to learn more.
With Campaign Partner, you can build your site privately and publish it whenever you're ready.
This page was last reviewed on October 4, 2026. Filing requirements, deadlines, campaign finance rules and judicial conduct rules vary by state and can change from one election cycle to the next. Always confirm current requirements with the election authority and judicial conduct body responsible for your race.