Litigation

Texas Chief Justice Urges Election Reform

By Peter Hardin

Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson of the Texas Supreme Court, delivering his biennial State of the Judiciary address, has renewed a call for reform of partisan judicial elections in the state.

“A justice system based on some notion of Democratic or Republican judging is a system that cannot be trusted,” he said, according to transcript of his text accompanying a Texas Tribune article. Justice Jefferson urged these reforms:

• For the legislature to “send the people a constitutional amendment that would allow judges to be selected on their merit.”
• Short of that, “eliminate straight- ticket voting that allows judges to be swept from the bench … not for poor work ethic, not for bad temperament, not even for their controversial but courageous decisions ? but because of party affiliation.”
• “[E]xtend terms for state judges, from four years to six for district court judges, and from six years to eight for appellate courts judges.  This will avoid some of the overhaul that occurs each election cycle, and drastically slows down the system.  And let?s bring sense to the process to allow a judge appointed to an unexpired term to serve a full term before having to face the voters.”

Full post as published by The Gavel on February 24, 2011 (boomark / email).