Ohio Judicial Elections: Common Sense From Ohio’s Bench
March 3, 2010
Ohio Chief Justice Thomas Moyer’s campaign to abolish democratic judicial elections has run into strong opposition from his colleagues on the state Supreme Court. In a Columbus Dispatch article, Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton said judicial elections are “open and transparent” and made the common sense observation that:
“… people are smart enough and there’s enough information out there for them to make those judgments about who should serve on the court.”
Justice Maureen O’Connor seconded the motion:
“No method for judicial selection is ideal and without problems. I believe that we should work with the elective system and concentrate on educating the public about the qualifications, records and philosophies of each candidate. The public can then decide who deserves their vote, trust and confidence.”
Justice Paul Pfeifer added that “merit” selection “is going nowhere” in Ohio.
In an era where judges routinely look down on the people they serve (see my post on Judge H. Lee Sarokin), it’s refreshing to hear from judges who understand that in a democracy the people are sovereign.