Elissa Cadish
2019 - Present
2025
5
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Elissa Cadish is a judge for Seat C of the Nevada Supreme Court. She assumed office in 2019. Her current term ends on January 6, 2025.
Cadish ran for re-election for the Seat C judge of the Nevada Supreme Court. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Cadish is the chief justice on the Nevada Supreme Court. The chief justice of the supreme court is chosen according to seniority and she succeeds Justice Lidia Stiglich.[1] In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship, a study examining the partisan affiliation of all state supreme court justices in the country. As part of this study, we assigned each justice a Confidence Score describing our confidence in the degree of partisanship exhibited by the justices' past partisan behavior, before they joined the court.[2] Cadish received a confidence score of Strong Democrat.[3] Click here to read more about this study.
Biography
Cadish was born in Brooklyn, New York. She received a B.A. in political science from the University of Pennsylvania in 1986 and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1989. From 1989 to 1991, Cadish clerked for Judge Philip Pro in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada. She worked as a private attorney from 1991 to 2007.[4][5]
On July 12, 2007, Gov. Jim Gibbons (R) appointed Cadish to the Nevada Eighth Judicial District Court to fill the Department 6 vacancy left by Judge Joseph Bonaventure’s retirement.[6] Cadish was elected to the Nevada Supreme Court in 2018.[4]
Elections
2024
See also: Nevada Supreme Court elections, 2024
General election
General election for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C
Incumbent Elissa Cadish won election in the general election for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Elissa Cadish (Nonpartisan) | 100.0 | 831,506 |
| Total votes: 831,506 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Incumbent Elissa Cadish advanced from the primary for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C.
Campaign finance
Endorsements
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Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Cadish in this election.
2018
- See also: Nevada Supreme Court elections, 2018
General election
General election for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C
Elissa Cadish defeated Jerome Tao in the general election for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Elissa Cadish (Nonpartisan) | 45.3 | 404,206 |
 | Jerome Tao (Nonpartisan) | 32.4 | 289,309 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 22.3 | 198,730 | ||
| Total votes: 892,245 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C
Elissa Cadish and Jerome Tao defeated John Rutledge, Leon Aberasturi, and Alan Lefebvre in the primary for Nevada Supreme Court Seat C on June 12, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Elissa Cadish (Nonpartisan) | 41.4 | 111,079 |
| ✔ | | Jerome Tao (Nonpartisan) | 23.5 | 63,146 |
 | John Rutledge (Nonpartisan) | 14.2 | 38,161 | |
 | Leon Aberasturi (Nonpartisan) | 13.0 | 34,832 | |
 | Alan Lefebvre (Nonpartisan) | 8.0 | 21,395 | |
| Total votes: 268,613 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2014
- See also: Nevada judicial elections, 2014
Cadish ran for re-election to the Nevada Eighth Judicial District Court (Dept. 6). She was elected without opposition in the primary on June 10, 2014.[7]
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Elissa Cadish did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Analysis
Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship (2020)
Last updated: June 15, 2020
In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship, a study examining the partisan affiliation of all state supreme court justices in the country as of June 15, 2020.
The study presented Confidence Scores that represented our confidence in each justice's degree of partisan affiliation. This was not a measure of where a justice fell on an ideological spectrum, but rather a measure of how much confidence we had that a justice was or had been affiliated with a political party. The scores were based on seven factors, including but not limited to party registration.[8]
The five resulting categories of Confidence Scores were:
- Strong Democrat
- Mild Democrat
- Indeterminate[9]
- Mild Republican
- Strong Republican
This justice's Confidence Score, as well as the factors contributing to that score, is presented below. The information below was current as of June 2020.
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Elissa
Cadish
Nevada
- Partisan Confidence Score:
Strong Democrat - Judicial Selection Method:
Elected - Key Factors:
- Was a registered Democrat
- Donated less than $2,000 to Democratic candidates
- Received donations from Democrat-affiliated individuals or organizations
Partisan Profile
Details:
Cadish was a registered Democrat as of 2020. She donated $1,920 to Democratic candidates. She received $500 from the Women's Democratic Club and $2,000 from the Nevada State Education Association, both of which contribute to Democratic candidates more frequently than Republicans. She was endorsed by the Nevada State Education Association. When she was elected to the court, Nevada was a Democratic trifecta.
Federal judicial nomination
U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada
President Barack Obama (D) nominated Cadish to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Nevada on February 16, 2012, to fill the vacancy left by Judge Philip Pro.[10][11] Obama said of Cadish and two other district court nominees, "Throughout their careers, these nominees have displayed unwavering commitment to justice and integrity. ... Their records of public service are distinguished and impressive and I am confident that they will serve the American people well from the United States District Court bench. I am honored to nominate them today."[10]
Cadish's nomination was returned to the president on January 3, 2013, and resubmitted on January 4, 2013.[12][13]
On March 7, 2013, Cadish withdrew her nomination. In a letter to Sens. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.), Cadish wrote, "By withdrawing my nomination I am hopeful that there will be a speedy nomination and confirmation process for a new candidate in order to get that court up to its full complement of judges to the benefit of all citizens of Nevada."[14]
Cadish was rated Unanimously Qualified by the American Bar Association.[14]
State supreme court judicial selection in Nevada
- See also: Judicial selection in Nevada
The seven justices of the Nevada Supreme Court are elected to six-year terms in nonpartisan elections. When their terms expire, justices must run for re-election if they wish to remain on the court.[15]
Qualifications
To serve on the Nevada Supreme Court, a person must:
- be at least 25 years old;
- be licensed and admitted to practice law in Nevada, and have been licensed and admitted to practice law in the United States for at least 15 years, including at least two years in Nevada;
- be a qualified elector; and
- have been a state resident for at least two years preceding the election[16]
Chief justice
The chief justice of the supreme court is chosen according to seniority. According to state law, if there are two or more eligible justices, the chief justice is determined by lot.[17] Alternatively, the internal operating procedures of the supreme court allow the possibility of an agreement between eligible justices.[18] According to the Administrative Office of the Courts in Nevada, often the eligible members of the court will agree to a lesser term as chief justice if there are multiple eligible justices in the last two years of their terms who want to serve in that capacity. Such agreements have been memorialized by a court order or other official document filed with the clerk.[19]
Vacancies
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the Nevada Commission on Judicial Selection solicits and screens applicants. The commission presents a list of three nominees to the governor, who appoints one to fill the vacancy until the next general election. If the predecessor's term is not expiring that election cycle, the appointed justice must win the election to the court to serve the remainder of the unexpired term.[20]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate Nevada Supreme Court Seat C |
Officeholder Nevada Supreme Court Seat C |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 2 News Nevada, "Elissa Cadish Assumes Role as Chief Justice of Nevada Supreme Court," January 2, 2024
- ↑ We calculated confidence scores by collecting several data points such as party registration, donations, and previous political campaigns.
- ↑ The five possible confidence scores were: Strong Democrat, Mild Democrat, Indeterminate, Mild Republican, and Strong Republican.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Supreme Court of Nevada, "Justice Elissa F. Cadish," accessed July 5, 2021
- ↑ United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, "Questionnaire for Judicial Nominees," accessed July 5, 2021
- ↑ Las Vegas Review-Journal, "Gibbons names Bonaventure replacement," July 13, 2007
- ↑ Nevada Secretary of State, "Silver State Election Night Results 2014," July 15, 2014
- ↑ The seven factors were party registration, donations made to partisan candidates, donations made to political parties, donations received from political parties or bodies with clear political affiliation, participation in political campaigns, the partisanship of the body responsible for appointing the justice, and state trifecta status when the justice joined the court.
- ↑ An Indeterminate score indicates that there is either not enough information about the justice’s partisan affiliations or that our research found conflicting partisan affiliations.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The White House, "President Obama Nominates Three to Serve on the US District Court," February 16, 2012
- ↑ The White House, "Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate," February 16, 2012
- ↑ Congress.gov, "PN1382 — Elissa F. Cadish — The Judiciary," accessed July 5, 2021
- ↑ Congress.gov, "PN8 — Elissa F. Cadish — The Judiciary," accessed July 5, 2021
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Las Vegas Review-Journal, "Yearlong federal judge courtship ends for Cadish," March 9, 2013
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Nevada | Selection of Judges," accessed August 20, 2021
- ↑ Nevada Legislature, " NRS 2.020 Qualifications," accessed August 20, 2021
- ↑ Nevada Legislature, "NRS 2.030 Election; Chief Justice," accessed August 20, 2021
- ↑ Nevada Judiciary, "Nevada Supreme Court: Internal Operating Procedures," May 20, 2021
- ↑ This information was provided to Ballotpedia in an email from the Administrative Office of the Courts in Nevada.
- ↑ Administrative Office of the Courts, "FACTS and FAQs," accessed August 20, 2021
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Michael Cherry |
Nevada Supreme Court Seat C 2019-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Nevada Eighth Judicial District Court 2007-2019 |
Succeeded by - |
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Federal courts:
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Nevada • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Nevada
State courts:
Nevada Supreme Court • Nevada Court of Appeals • Nevada District Courts • Nevada Justice Courts • Nevada Municipal Courts • Clark County Family Court, Nevada
State resources:
Courts in Nevada • Nevada judicial elections • Judicial selection in Nevada
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