Editor’s note: A previous version of this story stated that New York City had only one competitive judge race in November, but there are four.

On the back of your ballot you’ll have the opportunity to cast a vote for judicial candidates — but in all but four races, there are open positions available for every candidate running.

So unless you live in Queens or parts of southern Brooklyn, the judges who will be elected to the bench this November are essentially predetermined. 

Of the 18 judicial races appearing on New York ballots next month, 14 of them have no competition at all. For those remaining, some Republican candidates appear to give some nominal challenge to Democrats, but they’ll have an uphill climb given the massive voter registration advantage Democrats have in the city.

Who’s on the ballot in these rare competitive races? And why don’t New Yorkers get a real say in who their other judges will be?

Let’s break it down:

Queens: Surrogate’s Court and More

If you’re a Queens voter, you have a real choice between candidates Cassandra A. Johnson (D) and Stephen Weiner (R, CON, and Common Sense) for Surrogate’s Court.

A Surrogate Judge, also known simply as the Surrogate, deals with matters relating to wills, estates and guardianship. The position in Queens has long been held by Democrats, but Republican challenger Weiner seeks to make court processes more efficient and approachable — and though he’s a Republican running against a Democrat, he’s not looking for a partisan shift.

“I am taking up the banner of reform. And it’s not about a Republican court. I’m not interested in a Republican court. I don’t want to trade one clubhouse for another,” Weiner told the Sunnyside Post. 

Johnson is currently the Supreme Court 11th Judicial District Justice, and Weiner is an attorney specializing in wills, trusts and estates. Johnson is the Democratic party’s pick for the role, and already fended off a rare primary challenger — the first surrogate primary since 1962.

There are two other judge races in Queens this year, as well, but with little campaigning from the candidates and a high number of seats available for those in the race, Democrats have a big advantage. According to state Board of Elections data, Queens County has 811,000 ed Democrats compared to 147,000 Republicans and 310,000 independents. Like in the Surrogate’s race, the following contests are county-wide:

Judge of the Civil Court: Queens County

Voters will choose five of eight candidates.

• Glenda M. Hernandez (D)
• William David Shanahan (R and C)
• Sharifa M. Nasser-Cueller (D)
• Amish R. Doshi (D)
• Mary-Ann E. Maloney (R)
• Peter F. Lane (D and R)
• Melissa B. Deberry (D)
• Stephen C. Dachtera (R)

Judge of the Supreme Court: 11th Judicial District, which encomes all of Queens

Voters will choose seven of nine candidates.

• Alan J. Schiff (D, R and C)
• Delsia G. Marshall (D)
• Gary Muraca (R and C)
• Sandra M. Munoz (D)
• Kathy Wu Parrino (R and C)
• Lumarie Maldonado-Cruz (D)
• Claudia Lanzetta (D, R and C)
• Andrea S. Ogle (D)
• John C. Katsanos (D)

Brooklyn: Municipal Court, 5th District

This court district spans the southwest corner of Brooklyn including Bay Ridge, Sunset Park, Windsor Terrace, Kensington, Borough Park, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst and Bath Beach. See the full map of the district here. 

Three candidates are vying for two spots on the Civil Court, and in the politically mixed area, it’s a toss-up. On the Democratic ballot line, Board of Elections general counsel Hemalee J. Patel is running against litigator Jacob Zelmanovitz, who will appear on both the Democrat and Conservative party lines.

A third candidate, attorney Benjamin J. Lieberman, will appear on only the Conservative Party line.

Why are there so few competitive races?

In New York, judicial races are often predetermined. 

Why? The judicial nominees for the Supreme Court are frequently hand-picked by party insiders and often spend years currying favor and donating to the party before declaring their candidacy for judge, as THE CITY has previously reported.

They’re selected at judicial conventions, where elected delegates vote on which candidates make it on the ballot. However, despite it being an election, it’s not a very democratic process: party leaders decide on their preferred candidates before the delegates even step into the room to vote. Meanwhile, the delegates themselves are often party loyalists who don’t receive any information about the nominees ahead of the convention. 

Despite the old-school influence of political machines over the judicial selection process, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the system as constitutional in 2008. 

There are some judges who go through a regular primary system, including Surrogate’s Court and Civil Court, but competitive races are a rarity in the city. Few candidates are willing to take on party-backed candidates, and with little competition, primaries aren’t often truly close.

What do the different courts do?

New York City has five different main court systems. On your ballot, some New Yorkers will see judicial candidates for the Supreme Court, Civil Court and Surrogate’s Court.

• Supreme Court: Unlike our national Supreme Court, the New York Supreme Court is not the highest court in the state — that’s the Court of Appeals, whose judges are appointed by the governor. The Supreme Court deals with criminal and civil cases and is the only court that can grant divorce proceedings. It also generally only hears cases that are outside the jurisdiction of other state and city courts. Supreme Court judges are elected to serve 14 year .

• New York City Civil Court: Civil Court deals with civil cases, i.e. cases that have to do with disputes between people or organizations, rather than cases which deal with the violation of a criminal law. It deals with cases involving amounts of money up to $50,000, and it’s also where you’ll find small claims court and housing court. Civil Court judges serve 10 year .

• Surrogate’s Court: As we mentioned above, the Surrogate’s Court deals with issues involving decedents, which includes handling wills, estates and adoptions. The Surrogate judge is elected to serve a 14 year term, or until retirement at 70 — so Weiner, the Republican challenger, would serve only 4 years.

New York City also has Family Court and Criminal Court, but these positions are selected by the mayor at the recommendation of a judiciary committee that he appoints. Neither are elected positions.