Litigation

Million-Dollar Retention Elections in Iowa?

By Peter Hardin

Could Iowans see an unprecedented $1 million flow into three retention elections for state Supreme Court justices this fall?

A Des Moines Register blog posting raises that possibility. The blog attributes it to an official of the Justice at Stake Campaign, which issued a joint report with the Brennan Center for Justice (see Gavel Grab) saying campaign spending in judicial retention elections will likely surge this year, due to challenges under way in four states.

?We?re startled just because we?ve never seen it before,? said Charles Hall,  Justice at Stake communications director. ?We?ve never seen this kind of energy and money in this many retention elections at the same time.?

In Iowa,  social conservatives are seeking to oust three justices who participated in a unanimous ruling that legalized same-sex marriage. National conservative groups spent more than $121,000 on TV ads in Iowa through Sept. 21, supporting the ouster effort, the two nonpartisan reform groups said. Other states with retention elections that have heated up are Colorado, Illinois and Kansas.

Justice at Stake is a national partnership that works to preserve fair and impartial courts.

?It is important that judges have as much freedom as possible to honestly examine and apply the law,? Hall told the Iowa newspaper. ?The concern we have is if judges feel like they can be thrown out anytime they have to issue an honest ruling in a controversial case. We don?t know how that will affect courts over the long haul.?

Full post as published by The Gavel on September 24, 2010 (boomark / email).