Gov. Nathan Deal's Judicial Nominating Commission recommended six candidates for two open seats on the Fulton County Superior Court.

The finalists are:

• Elizabeth A. “Beth” Beskin of Chalmers Burch & Adams. She is a Republican member of the state House of Representatives, serving District 54, which includes Buckhead;
• Audra A. Dial, the Atlanta managing partner at Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton;
• Rachel R. Krause, a partner at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith;
• Shalanda M. J. Miller, a senior assistant city attorney in the city of Atlanta Department of Law;
• Richard S. Moultrie Jr., an assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia; and
• Emily K. Richardson, deputy chief assistant district attorney for DeKalb County.

The JNC interviewed 18 candidates on Tuesday. The vacancies were created by the retirement of Judge John Goger and Deal's appointment of Judge Todd Markle to the Court of Appeals.

Deal's eight years in office will end next month.

Diversity advocates have criticized some of Deal's judicial appointments for not including enough African-Americans and women.

The JNC's short list for the two Fulton seats, however, includes no white men. Beskin, Dial, Krause and Richardson are white women. Miller is an African-American woman. Moultrie is an African-American man.

Goger and Markle are both white men. The remaining Fulton County Superior Court judges are five African-American women, five white women, five white men and three African-American men.