New Mexico Supreme Court

New Mexico Supreme Court
Court Information
Justices: 5
Founded: 1912
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico
Salary
Associates: $191,683
Judicial Selection
Method: Partisan election
Term: 8 years
Active justices
Briana H. Zamora David Thomson Julie Vargas Michael Vigil Shannon Bacon

Founded in 1912, the New Mexico Supreme Court is the state's court of last resort and has five judgeships. The current chief of the court is Shannon Bacon.

As of September 2021, one judge was elected in a partisan election as a Democrat, and four judges were appointed by a Democratic governor.

The New Mexico Supreme Court meets in the Supreme Court Building in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The court's year-long term begins in January.

In New Mexico, state supreme court justices are elected in partisan elections. There are eight states that use this selection method. To read more about the partisan election of judges, click here.

Jurisdiction

The New Mexico Supreme Court has mandatory appellate jurisdiction over cases involving life sentence and death penalty appeals, Public Regulation Commission appeals, and appeals regarding election challenges. The court has discretionary appellate jurisdiction to grant writs of certiorari to review judgments of the New Mexico Court of Appeals, and it has superintending control over lower courts.

The following text from Article VI, Sections 2 and 3 of the New Mexico Constitution covers the jurisdiction of the court:

"	Supreme Court; Appellate Jurisdiction Appeals from a judgment of the district court imposing a sentence of death or life imprisonment shall be taken directly to the supreme court. In all other cases, criminal and civil, the supreme court shall exercise appellate jurisdiction as may be provided by law; provided that an aggrieved party shall have an absolute right to one appeal. Supreme Court; Original Jurisdiction; Supervisory Control; Extraordinary Writs The supreme court shall have original jurisdiction in quo warranto and mandamus against all state officers, boards and commissions, and shall have a superintending control over all inferior courts; it shall also have power to issue writs of mandamus, error, prohibition, habeas corpus, certiorari, injunction and all other writs necessary or proper for the complete exercise of its jurisdiction and to hear and determine the same. Such writs may be issued by direction of the court, or by any justice thereof. Each justice shall have power to issue writs of habeas corpus upon petition by or on behalf of a person held in actual custody, and to make such writs returnable before himself or before the supreme court, or before any of the district courts or any judge thereof.	”
—New Mexico Constitution, Article VI, Sections 2 and 3

Justices

The table below lists the current justices of the New Mexico Supreme Court, their political party, and when they assumed office.

Office	Name	Party	Date assumed office
New Mexico Supreme Court	Shannon Bacon	Democratic	February 4, 2019
New Mexico Supreme Court	David K. Thomson	Democratic	February 4, 2019
New Mexico Supreme Court	Julie Vargas	Democratic	January 25, 2021
New Mexico Supreme Court	Michael E. Vigil	Democratic	December 31, 2018
New Mexico Supreme Court	Briana H. Zamora	Democratic	August 9, 2021

Judicial selection

See also: Judicial selection in New Mexico

The five justices of the New Mexico Supreme Court are chosen through partisan elections. After serving for one year, the appointed justice must win the first partisan general election after their appointment to serve the remainder of the unexpired term. Justices serve eight-year terms. To serve additional terms, justices must receive at least 57% of the vote in a retention election.

Qualifications

To serve on the supreme court, a person must:

• be at least 35 years old;
• have practiced law for ten years before assuming office; and
• have been a New Mexico resident for three years before assuming office.

Chief justice

The chief justice of the supreme court is selected by a peer vote of the justices to serve a two-year term. The chief justice must have been elected to the court, not appointed to fill a vacancy.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts

In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a justice from a list of qualified candidates recommended by a judicial nominating commission. The appointed judge will serve until the first general election held one year after their appointment. The appointee must run in that general election to serve the remainder of the unexpired term.

The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.

Elections

See also: New Mexico Supreme Court elections

2024

See also: New Mexico Supreme Court elections, 2024

The term of one New Mexico Supreme Court justice will expire on December 31, 2024. The one seat is up for retention election on November 5, 2024. The filing deadline for retention candidates was June 27, 2024.

Candidates and results

Zamora's seat

New Mexico Supreme Court

Briana H. Zamora is running for retention to the New Mexico Supreme Court on November 5, 2024.

			Retention  Vote	%	Votes
			Yes
			No
			Total Votes

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2022

See also: New Mexico Supreme Court elections, 2022

General election

General election for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent Julie Vargas defeated Thomas Montoya in the general election for New Mexico Supreme Court on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Julie Vargas (D)	52.7	366,369
		Thomas Montoya (R)	47.3	328,475

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 694,844
= 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.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent Julie Vargas advanced from the Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 7, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Julie Vargas	100.0	114,820

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 114,820
= 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.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Thomas Montoya advanced from the Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 7, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Thomas Montoya	100.0	90,934

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 90,934
= 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.
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General election

General election for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent Briana H. Zamora defeated Kerry Morris in the general election for New Mexico Supreme Court on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Briana H. Zamora (D)	54.2	375,836
		Kerry Morris (R)	45.8	318,215

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 694,051
= 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.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent Briana H. Zamora advanced from the Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 7, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Briana H. Zamora	100.0	114,245

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 114,245
= 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.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Kerry Morris advanced from the Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 7, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kerry Morris	100.0	91,298

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 91,298
= 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.

Vigil's seat

New Mexico Supreme Court

Michael E. Vigil was retained to the New Mexico Supreme Court on November 8, 2022 with 69.3% of the vote.

			Retention  Vote	%	Votes
		✔	Yes	69.3	408,573
			No	30.7	180,965
			Total Votes		589,538

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It has been certified. Source

2020

See also: New Mexico Supreme Court elections, 2020

General election

General election for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent Shannon Bacon defeated Ned S. Fuller in the general election for New Mexico Supreme Court on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Shannon Bacon (D)	55.7	495,759
		Ned S. Fuller (R)	44.3	394,595

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 890,354
= 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.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent Shannon Bacon advanced from the Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Shannon Bacon	100.0	204,196

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 204,196
= 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.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Ned S. Fuller advanced from the Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Ned S. Fuller	100.0	133,706

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 133,706
= 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.
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General election

General election for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent David K. Thomson defeated Kerry Morris in the general election for New Mexico Supreme Court on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		David K. Thomson (D)	54.2	480,507
		Kerry Morris (R)	45.8	406,791

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 887,298
= 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.
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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Incumbent David K. Thomson advanced from the Democratic primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		David K. Thomson	100.0	201,767

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 201,767
= 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.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court

Kerry Morris advanced from the Republican primary for New Mexico Supreme Court on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Kerry Morris	100.0	132,763

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 132,763
= 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.

2018

See also: New Mexico Supreme Court elections, 2018

Candidates and results

Clingman's seat

General election candidates

• Gary L. Clingman  (Incumbent) (Republican Party)
• Michael E. Vigil  (Democratic Party) ✔

Justices not on the ballot

• Charles Daniels (D)
• Petra Jimenez Maes (D)

• Election history, 2008-2016 (click to expand)

  2016

  See also: New Mexico Supreme Court elections, 2016

  November 8 general

  Incumbent Judith Nakamura defeated Michael Vigil in the general election.

  New Mexico Supreme Court, Nakamura's seat, 2016
  Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
  	Republican	Judith Nakamura Incumbent	52%	396,303
  	Democrat	Michael Vigil	48%	365,790
  Total Votes (1492 of 1492: 100%)				762,093
  Source: New Mexico Secretary of State Official Results

  
  

  Barbara J. Vigil was retained with 71.60% of the vote.

  New Mexico Supreme Court, Vigil's seat, 2016
  Name	Yes votes
  Barbara J. Vigil	71.60%
  Source: New Mexico Secretary of State Official Results

  June 7 primary

  New Mexico Supreme Court 2016 Republican Primary, Nakamura's Seat, 2016
  Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
  	Republican	Judith Nakamura Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	84,941
  Total Votes (1492 of 1492: 100%)				84,941
  Source: New Mexico Secretary of State Official Results

  
  

  New Mexico Supreme Court 2016 Democratic Primary, Nakamura's Seat, 2016
  Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
  	Democratic	Michael Vigil  (unopposed)	100.00%	170,092
  Total Votes (1492 of 1492: 100%)				170,092
  Source: New Mexico Secretary of State Official Results

  2014

  See also: New Mexico judicial elections, 2014

  Retention

  Judge	Election Vote
  ChavezEdward Chavez	73.2% A

  2012

  See also: New Mexico judicial elections, 2012

  Candidate	Election Vote
  Vigil Barbara J. Vigil	54.81%   A
  Kennedy Paul Kennedy	45.19%   A

  
  

  Retention

  Judge	Election Vote
  BossonRichard Bosson	75.3% A

  2010

  See also: New Mexico judicial elections, 2010

  Charles Daniels stood for retention and was retained.

  New Mexico Supreme Court 2010 General election results
  Candidates		Votes	Percent
  Charles Daniels		325,361	73%

  Petra Jimenez Maes stood for retention and was retained.

  New Mexico Supreme Court 2010 General election results
  Candidates		Votes	Percent
  Petra Jimenez Maes		301,933	68%

  2008

  See also: State Supreme Court elections, 2008

  Charles Daniels (D), who was appointed to the court after the death of Justice Pamela Minzner, ran for election to serve the remainder of Minzner's unexpired term. He was unopposed.

  New Mexico Supreme Court 2008 General election results
  Candidates		Votes	Percent
  Charles Daniels		560,279	100%

  Patricio Serna stood for retention and was retained.

  New Mexico Supreme Court 2008 General election results
  Candidates		Votes	Percent
  Patricio Serna		452,043	75%

Caseloads

The table below details the number of cases filed with the court and the number of dispositions (decisions) the court reached each year.

New Mexico Supreme Court caseload data
Year	Filings	Dispositions
2020-2021	509	536
2019-2020	591	650
2018-2019	666	636
2017-2018	577	825
2016-2017	567	567
2015-2016	587	597
2014-2015	576	572
2013-2014	562	533
2012-2013	532	516
2011-2012	597	580
2010-2011	621	662
2009-2010	671	749
2008-2009	601	658
2007-2008	701	767
2006-2007	609	647

Analysis

Ballotpedia Courts: Determiners and Dissenters (2021)

See also: Ballotpedia Courts: Determiners and Dissenters

In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: Determiners and Dissenters, a study on how state supreme court justices decided the cases that came before them. Our goal was to determine which justices ruled together most often, which frequently dissented, and which courts featured the most unanimous or contentious decisions.

The study tracked the position taken by each state supreme court justice in every case they decided in 2020, then tallied the number of times the justices on the court ruled together. We identified the following types of justices:

• We considered two justices opinion partners if they frequently concurred or dissented together throughout the year.
• We considered justices a dissenting minority if they frequently opposed decisions together as a -1 minority.
• We considered a group of justices a determining majority if they frequently determined cases by a +1 majority throughout the year.
• We considered a justice a lone dissenter if he or she frequently dissented alone in cases throughout the year.

Summary of cases decided in 2020

• Number of justices: 5
• Number of cases: 23
• Percentage of cases with a unanimous ruling: 87.0% (20)
• Justice most often writing the majority opinion: Justice Barbara Vigil (9)
• Per curiam decisions: 0
• Concurring opinions: 0
• Dissenting opinions: 3
• Justice with most dissenting opinions: Justice Judith Nakamura (3)

For the study's full set of findings in New Mexico, click here.

Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship (2020)

See also: Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship

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, based on a variety of factors. This was not a measure of where a justice fell on the political or ideological spectrum, but rather a measure of how much confidence we had that a justice was or had been affiliated with a political party. To arrive at confidence scores we analyzed each justice's past partisan activity by collecting data on campaign finance, past political positions, party registration history, as well as other factors. The five categories of Confidence Scores were:

• Strong Democrat
• Mild Democrat
• Indeterminate
• Mild Republican
• Strong Republican

We used the Confidence Scores of each justice to develop a Court Balance Score, which attempted to show the balance among justices with Democratic, Republican, and Indeterminate Confidence Scores on a court. Courts with higher positive Court Balance Scores included justices with higher Republican Confidence Scores, while courts with lower negative Court Balance Scores included justices with higher Democratic Confidence Scores. Courts closest to zero either had justices with conflicting partisanship or justices with Indeterminate Confidence Scores.

New Mexico had a Court Balance Score of -5.6, indicating Democrat control of the court. In total, the study found that there were 15 states with Democrat-controlled courts, 27 states with Republican-controlled courts, and eight states with Split courts. The map below shows the court balance score of each state.

Bonica and Woodruff campaign finance scores (2012)

See also: Bonica and Woodruff campaign finance scores of state supreme court justices, 2012

In October 2012, political science professors Adam Bonica and Michael Woodruff of Stanford University attempted to determine the partisan outlook of state supreme court justices in their paper, "State Supreme Court Ideology and 'New Style' Judicial Campaigns." A score above 0 indicated a more conservative-leaning ideology while scores below 0 were more liberal. The state Supreme Court of New Mexico was given a campaign finance score (CFscore), which was calculated for judges in October 2012. At that time, New Mexico received a score of -1.18. Based on the justices selected, New Mexico was the most liberal court. The study was based on data from campaign contributions by judges themselves, the partisan leaning of contributors to the judges, or—in the absence of elections—the ideology of the appointing body (governor or legislature). This study was not a definitive label of a justice but rather an academic gauge of various factors.

Noteworthy cases

For a full list of opinions published by the court, click here. Know of a case we should cover here? Let us know by emailing us.

Ethics

The New Mexico Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in New Mexico. It is composed of eight rules:

• 21-100: Titled "A judge shall hold the integrity and independence of the judiciary."
• 21-200: Dictates that judges should show respect for the law, and sets guidelines for impartiality
• 21-300: Titled "A judge shall perform the duties of office impartially and diligently."
• 21-400: Describes a judge's duty to recuse in cases of conflicts of interest
• 21-500: Titled "A judge shall so conduct the judge's extra-judicial activities as to minimize the risk of conflict with judicial obligations."
• 21-600: Titled "Reporting quasi-judicial and extra-judicial activities and compensation."
• 21-700: Describes appropriate behavior related to "Elections and political activity."
• 21-800: Titled "A judge shall refrain from campaign fund-raising activity which has the appearance of impropriety."

The full text of the New Mexico Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

Removal of judges

Judges in New Mexico may be removed in one of two ways:

• Removal or retirement by the supreme court, on a recommendation of the judicial standards commission
• Impeachment by a majority vote of the house of representatives, plus removal a two-thirds vote of the senate

History of the court

The New Mexico Supreme Court was founded in 1912. The court had three seats until 1929, when it was expanded to five. For information about former justices of the New Mexico Supreme Court, click here.

The court meets in the Supreme Court Building in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Completed in 1937, the building was a project of the Public Works Administration and is on the U.S. Department of the Interior's National Register of Historic Places.

For a history of New Mexico state law, click here.

Courts in New Mexico

See also: Courts in New Mexico

In New Mexico, there is one federal district court, a state supreme court, a state court of appeals, and trial courts with both general and limited jurisdiction.

Click a link for information about that court type.

• Federal courts
• State supreme court
• State court of appeals
• Trial courts

The image below depicts the flow of cases through New Mexico's state court system. Cases typically originate in the trial courts and can be appealed to courts higher up in the system.

The structure of New Mexico's state court system.

Party control of New Mexico state government

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government. A state supreme court plays a role in the checks and balances system of a state government.

New Mexico has a Democratic trifecta. The Democratic Party controls the office of governor and both chambers of the state legislature.

New Mexico Party Control: 1992-2024
Seventeen years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24
Governor	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D
Senate	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D
House	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D

See also

New Mexico	Judicial Selection	More Courts
Courts in New Mexico New Mexico Court of Appeals New Mexico Supreme Court	Elections: 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 Gubernatorial appointments Judicial selection in New Mexico	Federal courts State courts Local courts

External links

• New Mexico Courts | Supreme Court
• New Mexico Courts | Current Supreme Court Justices
• New Mexico Courts | Former Supreme Court Justices
• New Mexico Courts | Supreme Court Opinions

Footnotes

New Mexico courts

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Federal courts:

Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of New Mexico • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of New Mexico

State courts:

New Mexico Supreme Court • New Mexico Court of Appeals • New Mexico District Courts • New Mexico Magistrate Court • New Mexico Municipal Courts • New Mexico Probate Courts • New Mexico Problem-Solving Courts • New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration Court • Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court

State resources:

Courts in New Mexico • New Mexico judicial elections • Judicial selection in New Mexico