Voting for Judges - Who's Under Robe Number 2?

Ok, so I'm reviewing the candidates for judges for local and state courts and they all pretty much give the same answer that they can't give an answer because it's not ethical. I understand the reasoning behind this. So, my question is this:

On what basis are we to intelligently vote for judges?

If it's unethical for them to tell us what they think, how do we discern their presuppositional makeup? Or, is it that it doesn't matter - that we have turned out cookie-cutter lawyers and judges? Well, we all know that's not the case, and if you've ever had to go through a series of lawyers and/or judges in an attempt to accomplish something in the court system, you are keenly aware that they are all different.

Do we have any lawyers or judges out there who can figure out how the average joe-the-voter is supposed to know who he's voting for when the candidate is running for judge?