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Judges appointed by Mary Fallin
This page lists judges appointed by Mary Fallin (R) during her term as Governor of Oklahoma. As of today, the total number of Fallin appointees was 39. For the full profile of Fallin, click here.
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population. Some Oklahoma judges are outside of that coverage scope. As a result, this page does not provide an exhaustive list of all judges appointed by Gov. Fallin.
Appointment process
In Oklahoma, the governor makes a judicial appointment after candidates are recommended by a judicial nominating commission. After the governor appoints a judge, the judge must run for retention at the appellate level or election at the trial court level in the next general election.[1][2]
Appointed judges
The tables below list the governor's appointees to the courts across the state.
State Courts
Supreme Court
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Oklahoma Supreme Court District 2 |
2017 - 2019 |
|
|
Oklahoma Supreme Court District 9 |
2018 - Present |
Court of Appeals
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals District 3 Office 1 |
September 2, 2011 - April 1, 2021 |
|
|
Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals District 4 Office 1 |
September 14, 2016 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals District 6 Office 2 |
2012 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals District 1 |
November 1, 2017 - 2021 |
|
|
Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals District 2 |
2015 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals District 4 |
2017 - Present |
Local Courts
| Name | Court | Active |
|---|---|---|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 1 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 14 |
2016 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 14, Pawnee County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 14, Tulsa County Special |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 17, Choctaw County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 17, McCurtain County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 17, McCurtain County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 1, Harper County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 1, Texas County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 20, Johnston County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 20, Marshall County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 21 |
2015 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 21 |
2013 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 21, Garvin County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 23, Pottawatomie County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 24, Okfuskee County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 25 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 26 |
2017 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 5 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 5, Comanche County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 5, Comanche County Associate |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 6 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
2012 - April 5, 2021 |
|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
2017 - Present |
|
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 7 |
||
|
Oklahoma Judicial District 8, Noble County Associate |
Judicial selection process
- See also: Judicial selection in Oklahoma
| Judicial selection in Oklahoma | |
 | |
| Oklahoma Supreme Court | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals | |
| Method: | Assisted appointment |
| Term: | 6 years |
| Oklahoma District Courts | |
| Method: | Nonpartisan election |
| Term: | 4 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 Oklahoma, including:
- Oklahoma Supreme Court,
- Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals,
- Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals,
- Oklahoma District Courts, and
- Limited jurisdiction courts
As of April 2025, judges for all appellate courts in the state were selected through assisted appointment, where the governor selects a nominee from a list provided by a nominating commission. Judges of the Oklahoma District Courts were selected in nonpartisan elections.[3]
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[4] |
|---|
|
|
| State courts and their selection methods across the U.S., including the District of Columbia[4] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Supreme Court (of 53)[5] | 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[6] | 1[7] | 17[8] |
State profile
| Demographic data for Oklahoma | ||
|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 3,907,414 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 68,595 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 73.1% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 7.2% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.9% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 7.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 7.8% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 9.6% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 86.9% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 24.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $46,879 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 19.7% | 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 Oklahoma. **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 Oklahoma
Oklahoma voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
More Oklahoma coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Oklahoma
- United States congressional delegations from Oklahoma
- Public policy in Oklahoma
- Endorsers in Oklahoma
- Oklahoma fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Oklahoma," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Oklahoma State Courts Network, "Oklahoma Judicial Nominating Commission," accessed August 29, 2014
- ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Oklahoma," accessed September 22, 2021
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 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.
Federal courts:
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Oklahoma, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Oklahoma, Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma
State courts:
Oklahoma Supreme Court • Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals • Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals • Oklahoma District Courts • Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Court of Existing Claims
State resources:
Courts in Oklahoma • Oklahoma judicial elections • Judicial selection in Oklahoma
