5 women among 7 nominees for Arizona Supreme Court vacancy

PHOENIX – Seven candidates, including five women, have been nominated to fill the Arizona Supreme Court’s vacancy, officials announced Tuesday.

When full, the state’s highest court has seven justices, each serving six-year renewable terms. Vice Chief Justice Ann Scott Timmer has been the panel’s only woman since 2015.

The Commission on Appellate Court Appointments nominated five judges and two attorneys to fill the spot that opened when Justice Andrew Gould’s retirement went into effect April 1.

Gov. Doug Ducey has 60 days appoint Cynthia Bailey, David Euchner, Jennifer Perkins, Kathryn King, Adele Ponce, Patricia Starr or David Weinzweig to replace Gould.

The Republican governor’s five previous appointees were all men.

Euchner works for the Pima County Public Defender’s Office, and King is a partner at Phoenix firm BurnsBarton, PLC.

Ponce and Starr are Superior Court judges in Maricopa County, while Bailey, Perkins and Weinzweig are Arizona Court of Appeals judges.

The nominees’ applications can be found on the Arizona Judicial Branch website.

Only two justices who weren’t chosen by Ducey remain on the state Supreme Court, Timmer and Chief Justice Robert Brutinel.

Ducey appointed Gould in 2016 along with Justice John Lopez IV after signing a law in 2016 to expand the court from five to seven members.

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