California’s judiciary has become steadily more diverse over the past two decades, according to newly-released demographic data showing significant increases in both gender and racial representation on the state’s judicial bench.
According to the Judicial Officer (JO) Demographic Data Report, for the 20th straight year California’s judicial bench has grown more diverse. Since December 2006, the number of female justices and judges is up by 17.8 percentage points and the percentage of Asian, Black and Hispanic justices and judges has increased by more than 140%.
The JO data reflects demographic information self-reported by justices and judges serving on the bench as of Dec. 31, 2025, and had a response rate of 93%. Responding to the questionnaire was voluntary, meaning the data reflects only the responses that were provided.
Data collected in December 2025 and published in March 2026 shows responding female justices and judges constitute about 44.9% of the judiciary across all court levels. That represents a 1.6 percentage point increase over the prior year and an increase of 17.8 percentage points since December 2006, the first year the data was collected for this purpose.
According to the JO Demographic Data Report, the bench has also continued to become more racially and ethnically diverse. The percentage of responding Asian, Black and Hispanic justices and judges has increased by more than 140% since 2006.
The report highlights the Judicial Council’s strategic plan for California’s Judicial Branch, which outlines a commitment to building a diverse and inclusive court system. The plan supports initiatives such as the council’s Pathways to Judicial Diversity toolkit.
The toolkit encourages courts to reach out to underrepresented groups, including individuals from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, as well as people with disabilities and diverse sexual orientations, to educate and advise them about pursuing careers in law.
The Judicial Mentor Program is also part of those efforts. The program is a statewide initiative involving the governor’s office and California courts aimed at developing and recruiting qualified and diverse judicial applicants.
In addition to the statewide program, appellate and superior courts throughout California also maintain their own local mentor programs.
The article also discusses how progress toward increasing judicial diversity has continued through the current governor’s judicial appointments. Since taking office in 2019 through 2025, more than half of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 695 judicial appointments have been women justices and judges.
More than half of those appointments also identified as Asian, Black or African American, Hispanic, or Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander.
The Judicial Council surveyed California judges and justices in December 2025 to capture a demographic snapshot of the state’s bench. The survey included data on gender, race or ethnicity and sexual orientation.
The findings show the percentage of female justices and judges increased to 44.9%, compared to 27.1% in 2006, continuing a steady upward trend.
Over the past two decades, the racial and ethnic composition of responding justices and judges has also shifted significantly. The percentage identifying as White declined from 70.1% in 2006 to 55.8% in 2025.
Meanwhile, the percentage of judges who did not provide race or ethnicity information dropped from 9.9% in 2006 to 1.5% in 2025.
Several racial and ethnic groups saw notable increases during this period. Judges identifying as Hispanic or Latino rose from 6.3% in 2006 to 13.1% in 2025, while those identifying as Asian increased from 4.4% to 11.9%.
The percentage of Black or African American judges also grew, more than doubling from 4.4% in 2006 to 9.9% in 2025.
Smaller increases were also reported among other groups. American Indian or Alaska Native representation rose from 0.1% to 0.3%, and Pacific Islander representation increased from 0.1% to 0.2%.
Those identifying as Some Other Race grew from 0.2% to 1.4%, while judges reporting More Than One Race increased from 4.4% to 5.8%.
Overall, the latest data highlights continued movement toward a judiciary that more closely reflects the communities it serves. With ongoing efforts by the Judicial Council and diverse judicial appointments under Newsom, the state’s bench continues to evolve in its demographic makeup.
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