Retention election

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Retention election or judicial retention within the United States court system, is a periodic process whereby a judge is subject to a vote during an election. A judge can be removed from the position if the majority of the citizens vote him or her out.

A judicial retention vote differs from regular voting in that when voting for judicial retention, a voter is not selecting a candidate. Judges do not have opponents. Rather, the voter expresses approval or disapproval for the judges presently holding their position. A judge remains in the position by a simple majority of approval votes.