judgesonmerit.org

According to a report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, things are getting a bit confusing in Missouri.  We’ve reported before about ballot initiative efforts related to changing Missouri’s Merit Selection plan.  That effort focused on eliminating the nominating commission and giving the governor the power to appoint any one of his choosing.  Now, the same group behind that effort has filed a second ballot initiative that conflicts with the first and seeks to have voters directly elect judges.

It’s not clear why the second initiative has been filed, and the group behind the effort — ShowMe Better Courts — has not explained which new plan it would prefer.  In addition, as the Post-Dispatch reports, that proponents of the current selection system have criticized ShowMe Better Courts “for failing to point to any real problems with Missouri’s judicial system, in terms of bad judges or bad rulings.”

We think this muddled effort should raise the suspicions of the Missouri public.  Information and honest discussion are critical in reform efforts, but those pushing for change in Missouri won’t say what they really want.