Do Promoters of “Merit Selection” Want to Take Away Your Right To Vote? You Be The Judge
April 4, 2008
Lynn Marks complains that opponents of merit selection in Pennsylvania are engaging in “scare tactics” when we argue that merit selection takes away our constitutional right to vote. Oh really?
Pennsylvania’s Constitution clearly states: “Justices, judges and justices of the peace shall be elected … by the electors of the Commonwealth” – i.e. the voters.
The special interest group headed by Marks (Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts) wants to turn judicial selection over to a 14-member committee composed mainly of lawyers who would meet behind closed doors and then submit a list of approved candidates to the governor. Voters would play no role in the nominating process.If that’s not giving up my constitutional right to vote, I don’t know what is.
Marks says it’s “telling” that merit selection opponents “fail to notice the retention election component” of their plan. Sorry, but letting citizens simply vote up or down on a judge who has already been sitting on the bench for four years and would face no challengers whatsoever simply doesn’t provide the kind judicial accountability the authors of Pennsylvania’s constitution had in mind when they gave us the right to vote for judges.
What’s even more “telling” is that Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts – and other special interests trying to abolish judicial elections across America – is bankrolled in part by Open Society Institute, hedge fund billionaire George Soros’s group – a funder of ultra-liberal causes like Moveon.org.
Marks and other opponents of democratically-elected judges claim they want to get special interests out of the courtroom. But it turns out they don’t really mind – as long as they’re the right special interests.
Posted by Dan Pero in the categories: Judicial Elections, Pennsylvania, State Battlegrounds
2 Responses to “Do Promoters of “Merit Selection” Want to Take Away Your Right To Vote? You Be The Judge”
What critics of merit selection — yourself included — consistently ignore is that only the people of Pennsylvania can change the way we pick appellate judges. This requires a constitutional amendment, which can only be passed by a vote of the people. We are not afraid to let the people vote and decide this critical issue.
[...] again and again to the same hollow argument. He insists there is a conspiracy afoot to “take away” the right of the citizens of Pennsylvania to vote for appellate [...]