Litigation

Candidate Eyes Changes to IA Merit Selection

By Peter Hardin

Terry Branstad, the Republican nominee for governor in Iowa, is proposing changes in the way the state chooses its judges.

Iowa relies on merit selection of judges through a nominating commission making recommendations of judicial candidates to the governor, and through subsequent retention (up-or-down) elections.

According to an Iowa Independent article, Branstad said in a recent radio interview he’d like to see a judicial selection system that mirrors the federal process. He called Iowa’s system “flawed” and elaborated:

?That?s the frustrating thing as governor. You only get to choose from the three that are nominated for the Supreme Court or District Court from two. It?s not like the president. The president just chose a Justice for the U.S. Supreme Court that has never tried a case.

“Yet the governor has to choose from the three or the two that are nominated by the nominating commission. I believe that needs to be changed so you can indeed choose people who have a commitment to protect the constitution and to judicial restraint.?

He suggested that the governor be permitted to select any nominee he chooses, and the nominee would be subject to confirmation by the state Senate.

You can read in a recent Gavel Grab post about a defense of Iowa’s merit selection system by the State Bar Association president. Or you can check out other Gavel Grab posts about the controversy over Iowa’s Supreme Court agreeing to legalize same-sex marriage and the repercussions.

Branstad, a former governor, has drawn criticism over his appointment of two of the Supreme Court justices who participated in that decision.

Full post as published by The Gavel on August 02, 2010 (boomark / email).