tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24546933.post7718169091598994066..comments2024-03-26T13:05:52.830-05:00Comments on For What It's Worth: ICJL joins call for judicial election reformJack Leyhanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15884163579967286888noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24546933.post-56885049670948147322012-03-20T11:46:34.041-05:002012-03-20T11:46:34.041-05:00I have a long, angry rant about this that I'll...I have a long, angry rant about this that I'll try to detoxify and write down...if I don't write it for some publication then I'll send it to you. Basically a thought-experiment about what empirically will happen if you actually hold nonpartisan elections, compared to what some of the idealists believe will happen.<br /><br />P.S. Hey, sounds like you've got a fan out there!Albertnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24546933.post-52700427106874567632012-03-19T17:56:23.462-05:002012-03-19T17:56:23.462-05:00Whether it be an elective system (partisan or non-...Whether it be an elective system (partisan or non-partisan) or appointive system or some blending of the two, thankfully Mr. Leyhane, your chances of ever becoming a judge in Chicago are slim to none.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24546933.post-53040529979934563942012-03-19T15:59:34.775-05:002012-03-19T15:59:34.775-05:00Albert -- if your objection is that nonpartisan ju...Albert -- if your objection is that nonpartisan judicial elections would not necessarily provide better judges, I'd be inclined to agree. We went with nonpartisan elections for Chicago aldermen a while back, and aldermen have gotten into trouble since, just like they got into trouble before. I don't know how we'd prove whether partisan vs. non-partisan elections provided better judges unless we could (somehow) run elections both ways.<br /><br />On the other hand, judicial elections in Cook County (and many downstate counties, too, apparently) are effectively over tomorrow. No one bothers to file for vacancies in the party relegated to the permanent minority status in Cook or any other county because it amounts to a futile gesture. Nobody likes making futile gestures. Voters who fail to vote in the majority party primary, therefore, are effectively disenfranchised. I don't suggest that this amounts to a constitutional violation or a Voting Rights Act issue -- someone who specializes in these rarified areas would have to address that -- but it does set my fairness meter buzzing, just a bit.<br /><br />In previous comments on this, you've invoked one of the fundamental principles of the Universe, namely, the Law of Unintended Consequences. Pat Quinn thought he was saving money with the legislative cutback amendment many years ago, back when he was just a gadfly, but now....<br /><br />But serious consideration is still the best defense against the worst unintended consequences. The Devil truly is in the details, sometimes, anyway.<br /><br />With the understanding that we can not guarantee better judges by a nonpartisan primary, what other objections, problems, concerns, etc. are seen here?Jack Leyhanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15884163579967286888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24546933.post-85569845553313140012012-03-19T11:18:43.818-05:002012-03-19T11:18:43.818-05:00I never cease to be amazed that people push for no...I never cease to be amazed that people push for nonpartisan elections without having done any sort of proper comparative research or analysis. Nonpartisan elections have their own strengths and weaknesses just like partisan elections do, and replacing one with the other simply means replacing one set of strengths and weaknesses with another. Nonpartisan elections are not the panacea that some people portray them to be.<br /><br />Ultimately somebody needs to produce convincing evidence that one type of system produces a better judiciary than another. Which is the whole point, isn’t it? That research has yet to be performed.Albertnoreply@blogger.com