MY TURN: Why Alaska judges don’t campaign

Published 9:30 am Saturday, October 17, 2026

Driving the highways in other states at this time of year, you will see election ads, yard signs and bumper stickers…and many of those include support or opposition to judges on the ballot.

You won’t see those in Alaska. Not because judges are not on the ballot, they are. But because the ethics rules governing judicial campaigns in Alaska protect the nonpartisan judiciary that our state constitution envisioned.

There are many ethics rules governing Alaska judges. Notably, judges in Alaska are prohibited from engaging in political activity. Judges are expressly prohibited from holding office in a political organization, publicly endorsing or opposing any candidate for public office, attending any political gatherings, and soliciting funds for any political organization or candidate. The sole exception is for a judge on the upcoming retention ballot who faces “active opposition.” In other words, judges in Alaska cannot actively promote their retention in office through campaign activity unless there is an active campaign against their retention.

Each retention election, those who can campaign are a very small group, and that is a very good thing.

While news reports often attempt to put a political motivation behind high-profile judicial decisions, what state court judges do on a day-to-day basis has nothing to do with their personal beliefs or political preferences. Judges decide what parenting plan is best for a child in a divorce. They decide whether terms of a contract were honored and whether state laws were obeyed. Judges ensure that trials are run fairly and that each side to a dispute has their opportunity in court.

These responsibilities are not suited to campaign slogans or election promises.

In fact, another part of Alaska’s Code of Judicial Conduct prohibits judges from making any pledges or promises other than to impartially perform their duties.

Other states have elaborate, pricey, and very political elections for their judges.

Often those elections entail contributions to judicial campaigns from interested people and corporations who expect specific outcomes. Our nonpartisan retention election where you get to vote “yes” or “no” as to whether a judge can serve an additional term focuses on the true nature of judging. No judge can or should predict how they would decide any given case.

Judges in Alaska cannot and should not appear to serve any special interest or any party in a case that may come before them.

The only promise an Alaska state court judge will make is to fairly and impartially decide any matter that will come before them. While that doesn’t appear on any yard sign, it sure would be great if it did.

Marla Greenstein is a former director for the Alaska Commission on Judicial Conduct.