Judges serve on the bench for a year (Schmalleger, 2011). Opponents argue that while neither the Republican nor Democratic state parties may hold much influence within the commission, the commission itself encourages factionalism and the creation of new informal political parties. It is conceivable that an appointive system could be what some observers call one-person judicial selection in other words, a chief executive, such as a governor, county executive, or mayor, is granted the power to decide whom to appoint to the bench. 4, 2010) (Impeachment of G. Thomas Porteous, Jr., Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Lousiana), https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/111th-congress/house-report/427/1. That is why I think they should be decided by. In some cases, judges are able to run for election if they want to be a judge. One concern expressed about merit selection is the removal of direct public participation in the selection process, as compared to elections (p. 3). Their knowledge of the law and how it can be applied to particular circumstances would allow them to resolve disputes in ways that are objectively correct. Over the course of 25 years, the commission consistently saw itself divided, with one wing representing small-firm plaintiffs lawyers and criminal defense attorneys and the other wing representing large-firm civil defense attorneys.25 And for merit systems where the governor selects the individual from names submitted by the commission, partisan politics undoubtedly are at play. But judges, who must apply impartially the laws created by the other two brancheslaws that affect opposing constituenciesare expected to remain above the fray. Many states utilize executive appointment but have added methods to keep the governor in check. The article summarizes five such methods, some of their history, as well as pros and cons. First used in Missouri in 1940, the governor appoints judges from a list compiled by a non-partisan nominating commission. WebMerit-selected judges are slightly less likely than the average to be former prosecutors and slightly less likely to have practiced other forms of government law. The five main methods are: Partisan elections, Nonpartisan elections, Legislative elections, gubernatorial appointment, and assisted appointment. Latest answer posted November 14, 2019 at 7:38:41 PM. 17. Goelzhauser presents a comprehensive analysis of all state supreme court merit selection appointments between 1942 and 2016 to discern whether institutional design influences the quality and diversity of judicial appointees. Because the branches that are the most likely to gain an exorbitant amount of power and then to use that power for political purposes are the executive branch and the legislative branch, democracies need to have a judicial branch that is free from political pressures.
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