Merit selection replaces partisan appointment with commission nomination

Evidence

Merit selection, developed as an alternative to the political selection of judges, is designed to enhance judicial independence and limit judicial accountability. Instead of party leaders or voters, a commission composed of lawyers (selected by the organized bar) and nonlawyers (usually selected by the governor) nominates prospective judges. When a judicial vacancy develops, the commission sends a short list of candidates to the governor, who is obliged to fill the vacancy from that list. Periodic retention elections, in which neither party labels nor competing candidates appear on the ballot, offer voters the opportunity to assess the incumbent’s performance. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 606

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Governors can control merit selection almost as much as direct appointment. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 626; Selection method produces few but patterned differences in judicial voting. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 633; Merit selection transforms rather than removes politics from judicial selection — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 439 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Merit selection transforms rather than removes politics from judicial selection #expands (0.90) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 439