Running for judge in Cook County just got more difficult

Judicial candidates in Cook County will have to file more signatures to qualify for next year's ballot and no Illinois judicial hopeful will be permitted to file for more than one vacancy under legislation introduced and passed in the closing moments of the Spring legislative session. (See related story on page two.)

Under SB 1586, now enrolled as P.A. 97-81, §7-10 of the Illinois Election Code has been amended to provide, at §7-10(h) (insertions shown by underline, deletions by strikeout):

If a candidate seeks to run for judicial office in a district, then the candidate's petition for nomination must contain the number of signatures equal to 0.4% of the number of votes cast in that district for the candidate for his or her political party for the office of Governor at the last general election at which a Governor was elected, but in no event less than 500 signatures. If a candidate seeks to run for judicial office in a circuit or subcircuit, then the candidate's petition for nomination must contain the number of signatures equal to 0.25% of the number of votes cast for the judicial candidate of his or her political party who received the highest number of votes at the last general election at which a judicial officer from the same circuit or subcircuit was regularly scheduled to be elected, but in no event less than 1,000 signatures in circuits and subcircuits located in the First Judicial District or 500 signatures in every other Judicial District 500 signatures.

In addition, §7-12 of the Illinois Election Code (10 ILCS 5/7-12)was amended to provide, at §7-12(9):

A candidate in a judicial election may file petitions for nomination for only one vacancy in a subcircuit and only one vacancy in a circuit in any one filing period, and if petitions for nomination have been filed for the same person for 2 or more vacancies in the same circuit or subcircuit in the same filing period, his or her name shall be certified only for the first vacancy for which the petitions for nomination were filed.

This will put an end to the time-honored practice of judicial candidates filing for multiple vacancies at once and then deciding which race to make after the filing period concludes. (In 2010, to cite an extreme example, Kevin J. Murphy filed for every countywide vacancy and all three vacancies in the 15th Judicial Subcircuit before deciding to make the run for the countywide Dolan vacancy.)

Only judicial offices are singled out in this fashion. Section 7-12(9) still provides, for all other "incompatible" offices, "If petitions for nomination have been filed for the same person for 2 or more offices which are incompatible so that the same person could not serve in more than one of such offices if elected, that person must withdraw as a candidate for all but one of such offices within the 5 business days following the last day for petition filing."

These changes will presumably add a degree of difficulty for candidates hoping to secure election to the bench in Cook County without the benefit of backing from the Democratic Party. Whether this was the drafters' intention is for others to consider.