Election Reform Is Called a ‘Huge Step’ to Protect State Courts
Justice at Stake, a national watchdog group committed to fair and impartial courts, hailed the signing today of a new public financing law in Wisconsin for appellate court elections. “Today, Wisconsin has taken a huge step to protect its courts from special interest pressure,” said Bert Brandenburg, executive director of Justice at Stake. “With Gov. Jim Doyle’s signature, Wisconsin’s judges can focus on applying the law and talking to voters, not on dialing for dollars.”
Wisconsin is now the third state to provide public financing for elections involving appellate and Supreme Court judges, joining North Carolina and New Mexico. Brandenburg noted that the North Carolina system has been popular with candidates and voters, and that federal courts have upheld it as constitutional.
The Impartial Justice bill was passed Nov. 5 by both houses of the Wisconsin legislature. But lawmakers failed to pass a separate measure to force special interest groups to reveal their funding sources for election ads.
Wisconsin witnessed an eruption in Supreme Court campaign spending and nasty TV ads in 2007-2008, with candidates raising a total of nearly $3.9 million. Millions more were spent on TV ads by special interest groups. All seven of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court justices signed a letter in 2007 endorsing public financing of Supreme Court elections.
A fact sheet on the Wisconsin measure is available at the Justice at Stake web site. A Nov. 5 Justice at Stake press release contains additional details about both the Wisconsin and North Carolina laws.
Nationally, 21 states fill Supreme Court vacancies with competitive elections. Twenty-nine states fill high court vacancies through appointments, with 24 using bipartisan commissions that submit nominees to the governor.
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Justice at Stake is a nonpartisan, nonprofit campaign working to keep America’s courts fair and impartial. Justice at Stake Campaign partners educate the public work for reforms to keep politics and special interests out of he courtroom—so judges can do their job of protecting our Constitution, our rights and the Rule of law. For more about Justice at Stake, go to www.justiceatstake.org, or www.gavelgrab.org.
