Earlier this month, voters in Oklahoma opted to oust longtime state Supreme Court Justice Yvonne Kauger from her seat on the bench.

Now that Kauger has been thrown out from Oklahoma's highest judicial body, officials have begun working on finding a replacement. 

Judicial Nominating Commission will provide three names to governor

According to Oklahoma City's News 9, Oklahoma's Judicial Nominating Commission is in the process of accepting applications for a new state Supreme Court justice.

The news station noted that interested parties must be at least 30 years old, have practiced law for at least five years, as well as reside and be registered to vote in Oklahoma's Judicial District 4.

Applicants will be reviewed by members of the 15-person commission, which will in turn provide three names for Oklahoma Republican Kevin Stitt to choose from.

The individual whom Stitt ultimately decides to select will then go on to serve a six-year term before he or she must face a retention vote.

Commission will evaluate candidates in "secret behind-closed-doors meetings"

All submissions are to be made by December 20 and information about potential nominees will be made available on the commission's website.

Oklahoma’s Judicial Nominating Commission is accepting applications until Dec. 20 to fill a seat left vacant by retiring Justice Kauger, with three finalists to be recommended to Governor Stitt for appointment. https://t.co/Bz0VSgY2dN

— News 9 (@NEWS9) November 25, 2024

"It's designed to be nonpartisan, and it's got a lot of stopgaps and a lot of things that prohibit it from being partisan, based on the members," News 9 Legal Analyst Irven Box was quoted as saying.

"These are secret behind-closed-doors meetings," Box continued, adding, "And the reasoning is that some of those questions are very sensitive, like asking people about their bankruptcy or their divorces or things of that nature."

Kauger was adopted into Native American tribe five decades ago

For her part, the 87-year-old Kauger recently told Oklahoma Voice that she has "no regrets" regarding her decades-long career.

The website pointed out how Kauger was only the second woman to serve on Oklahoma's Supreme Court, with her appointment coming just two years after that of Justice Alma Wilson.

What's more, Oklahoma Voice recalled how Kauger was officially adopted by the Cheyenne Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma in 1984, the same year of her appointment.

"It’s more of an honorary position, but I was the first person since statehood to be adopted by the Cheyenne Arapaho," she explained to the website.