judgesonmerit.org

The calls for judicial selection reform in Pennsylvania in the wake of the Caperton decision continue.  This week, the York Daily Record and the Lebanon Daily News joined the call for Merit Selection:

[W]hy do we hold elections for [appellate court judges]. . . .

It’s a good question — one we have been asking in this space for years. We agree with reformers [who] have been suggesting we move to “merit selection” of judges.

The editorials argue that the Caperton decision should convince previously reluctant legislators to support Merit Selection:

[T]he U.S. Supreme Court recently provided the perfect “excuse”: The high court ruled in a West Virginia case that judges must recuse themselves from cases involving high-dollar donors who helped them win their seats.

If Pennsylvania used a merit selection process — as proposed in recently introduced legislation — we wouldn’t have to worry about running afoul of that ruling and judges wouldn’t have to try to figure out whether a $50 donation requires recusal.

Good point — Merit Selection takes judges out of the fundraising business and eliminates concerns that a judge may feel “indebted” to a party or lawyer who helped finance the judge’s campaign.  We hope Pennsylvanians will recognize that Merit Selection is the solution.

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