Do Georgians face a threat to their right to vote for judges to the state’s highest courts?

The state legislature recently created a House Study Committee on Judicial Election Reform to “undertake a thorough study, assessment, and evaluation of the conduct of judicial campaigns in Georgia to determine if the independence and impartiality of the courts are threatened by the conduct of recent campaigns.”

More troubling, the legislature also established an Advisory Board to the five-member Committee that is heavily stacked with grandees from among the state’s legal elite, including the president of the State Bar and the president of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association. At least 10 members of the Advisory Board must be lawyers.

Defenders of democratic elections in Georgia need to keep an eye on this committee, which will make recommendations for any “reforms” to the legislature before the 2009 session.