These 8 people could become the next Arizona Supreme Court justice

The chief justice of the Arizona Supreme Court recently retired, and the commission that sends Gov. Katie Hobbs replacement nominees whittled the list down to eight people last week from the 17 who had applied to fill the vacancy.

In early December, the Commission on Appellate Court Appointments will conduct interviews and decide which of those eight will ultimately go to the governor to replace retiring Justice Robert Brutinel.

They have to submit at least three of those names to Hobbs, but they could send all of them.

No Republicans submitted an application for consideration to be picked by the Democratic governor, though the panel is required to send at least one Independent.

There is no requirement for the governor’s pick to be confirmed by the Senate, so Hobbs’s final choice will go directly to the post. This is a different process than at the federal level, where the president gets to choose anyone he wants, with the only barrier being getting Senate confirmation.

The commission is now asking anyone who wants to comment about anyone on the list to either come to the Supreme Court building for that Dec. 9 meeting or to submit their comments in writing. But only those willing to identify themselves will have their views considered.

Those advancing to the interview stage of the process are:

• Maria Elena Cruz, who is a judge on the state Court of Appeals. She is a Democrat.
• Nicole Davis, deputy director of the Department of Economic Security and the agency's general counsel. She is a political independent.
• Andrew Gaona, who is a Democrat in private practice. He also represented Hobbs in some of the legal battles following the 2022 election as well as more recent court fights with both the head of the Arizona Republican Party and with Senate Republicans over confirmation of her agency directors.
• Andrew Jacobs on the Arizona Court of Appeals, who is a Democrat.
• Doreen McPaul, a Democrat who is the assistant legislative attorney for the Tohono O'odham Nation.
• Regina Nassen, principal assistant attorney for the city of Tucson. Initially a political independent, she registered as a Democrat for 14 years before becoming an independent again in 2014.
• Alexander Samuels, an assistant state attorney general who is a Democrat.
• Amy Sells, a Democrat working for a Phoenix law firm.