Answer
They are nominated by the President and approved by the Senate.
Answer
Get a law degree, become active in politics at the state/local level, develop a reputation within your political party in your state, curry favor with both senators from your state, wait for one of the federal judges in your state to die or retire (should happen every few years depending on the size of your state), hope that the senator responsible for suggesting a candidate to the judiciary committee thinks you're the most qualified, survive confirmation process, serve for life.
Not in the US. Federal judges are appointed. not elected.
Lawyers become judges
What are federal judges appointed for?
The Senate must approve the people picked as federal judges.
A federal judge, serves as long as they want. They have Life Time appointments. There are 840 federal judges and each one has been chosen by a former or current president..most serve for 10, 20, 30, even 40 years. We still have federal judges that were appointed by Nixon
They are elected.
Most federal judges retire from full time service and become senior judges. Senior judges are still federal judges and eligible to earn a full salary. They do continue to hear cases under a reduced caseload. Essentially they are still working partime. This comes from US Code 371, Part 1, Chapter 17.
become more contentious
In the U.S., it varies by state. Federal judges are not elected; they are appointed.
The Senate has no check on the appointments of federal judges.
Court of Appeals judges, like all Article III federal judges, are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Generally, Senators recommend qualified judges from their home states to the President, so a person wanting to become a federal judge would do well to impress his or her state's two Senators.
For federal judges, the answer is Congress. Federal judges can be impeached by the House of Representatives and tried by the Senate.