Litigation

OH Election: Reform Proposals Aired

By Peter Hardin

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Maureen O’Connor, campaigning for the position of chief justice, has proposed judicial election reforms including the elimination of partisan primary elections and required reporting of campaign solicitations.

Justice O’Connor, a Republican, termed it “peculiar” for judicial candidates to campaign in partisan primaries, only to discard political labels in the general election, according to a Columbus Dispatch article.

Chief Justice Eric Brown, a Democrat who is seeking election to the seat he gained by an appointment, favors letting judicial candidates declare partisan affiliations during the entire election season.

Regarding disclosure of solicitations, Justice O’Connor said, according to an Associated Press article,“Is it enough for the public to know who donated to a judicial campaign if we are to judge whether a recusal is warranted?”

“It sounds unwieldy and unworkable,” Justice Brown said about that proposal. “And I’m not sure that it would provide meaningful information.”

Other reforms suggested by Justice O’Connor, and described in a statement on her campaign website, include requiring the state Senate’s “advice and consent” on appointments to fill vacancies on the state Supreme Court, and establishing screening panels to vet nominations for vacant judicial seats. Chief Justice Brown discusses some of his positions at his own campaign website.

Ohio ranks in the forefront of states where runaway judicial election spending has eroded public confidence in fair and impartial courts, according to a recent report by Justice at Stake and two partner groups that examined big spending on judicial elections in the past decade.

Full post as published by The Gavel on September 14, 2010 (boomark / email).