Kansas voters are set to decide on a constitutional amendment that would shift the state’s judicial selection process from gubernatorial appointment to direct election of state Supreme Court justices. Supporters of the measure, primarily Republicans, argue the change would give voters more control over the bench and allow them to elect justices more aligned with their policy preferences on abortion, school funding, and criminal justice matters.
Conservatives cite multiple court decisions over recent decades as motivation for the amendment. These include rulings on education funding that required increased state spending, a recent decision reinstating a voter ballot grace period that GOP lawmakers had eliminated, and a judge’s blocking of a 2025 law restricting gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors. Republican leaders have characterized these decisions as “outrageous” and “radical.” The amendment gained momentum among GOP lawmakers following voter approval of the court’s 2019 abortion rights decision in 2022, leading backers to draft this year’s proposal with hopes of electing at least four conservative justices by 2033.
Opponents raise concerns about the precedent set by other states. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who opposes the measure, warned that applying partisan election dynamics to the judiciary would make courts “less independent” and incorporate “dark money” into judicial decisions. She cited Wisconsin’s recent Supreme Court race, which exceeded $100 million in spending, as a cautionary example. Abortion rights advocates and supporters of judicial independence describe the proposal as a “power grab” designed to overturn the court’s existing protections.
Financial backing reflects the stakes involved. The vote-yes campaign has raised approximately $3.7 million, with the largest donor being a Nashville-based nonprofit supporting Republican causes. Anti-abortion groups including Kansans for Life have spent substantial sums on the campaign. The vote-no side has raised over $8 million, with Planned Parenthood affiliates contributing $1.6 million. Nationally, 22 states currently elect their top court judges, while 26 states use gubernatorial appointment and others employ different methods. Kansas itself elected justices for nearly 100 years before adopting the appointment system in 1958.
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