check it out.
look at who is endorsing them and who is endorsing their opponent

all the local candidates.

what kind of issues they have supported, and their judicial record if they are running for re-election.

This obviously is a burden for the voter, but with a bit of effort you can determine what kind of judge they are.

When I did this kind of research I found all kinds of buzzwords that told me just who a judge was. Words like "2nd Amendment rights" "property rights" = gun rights and low taxes. That tells you a lot. Sometimes you find affiliations with organizations and groups that will tell you whether someone is conservative or liberal.

Judges are supposed to be non-political offices, but that is bullshit and everyone knows it.

hitting local lawyers for funds. Which leads me to ask what happens when local lawyers who didn't contribute appear in their court.

Local lawyers ask, too, so they contribute.

There's "Choose five from the list below" and you have no idea who anyone is. Then you see judges cross endorsed so they appear on every line. I'm at a point where just don't vote for judges. The last Democratic committee meeting we finally found a retired lawyer who was willing to run for town judge. It took a while to find him.

Just appoint them for a limited time. Pick 'em out of a hat for all anyone cares.

Website. In Missouri the have the recommendations listed.

them that were appointed by Rick Scott, so I immediately voted no. A couple others were appointed by Jeb Bush, so I did further research. This is certainly not a foolproof method, but I'm okay with it.
On the Amendments, I simply read three major Florida newspaper editorials and it was easy peasy.

I sat in their courts this last January when I was on jury duty. Otherwise, there is voter info
available in most areas.

If they haven't been in the news, I vote to retain them.

It listed who and what they recommend. I'll probably go by that.
Your county's HQ likely has something like that.

https://644dems.org/2020/09/22/early-bird-special-for-nerds-abroad/

It is local to me in Miami but I'm sure there are versions in other areas

When forced to do it on my own I spend an inordinate amount of time on the non-partisan races and judgeships. Often it requires going back many cycles to locate true partisanship, like when they ran for office or held a position within a party. I only vote for judges and non-partisans who are proven to be Democrats. If both are Republican I skip the race.

already couldn't find any information about this guy named Atkinson.

I'll just follow along.

Their comment was for "Supreme and District Court Judges are up for a yes-or-no vote. All were appointed by a Republican governor."

I will vote NO for all of them.

Here, Tiffany Baker is running for Circuit Court Judge and the Leon Dems support her. She was endorsed by Ben Crump, among others.