Letters: Learn about candidates in judicial elections

Elections have consequences, for better or for worse.

And while most voters are focusing on the presidential election this November, there is another political battle brewing that has the potential to dramatically impact the state of Louisiana’s legal climate.

With Louisiana Supreme Court Justice Kitty Kimball retiring at the end of the year, the balance of our state’s highest court is in jeopardy. Several appellate court judges around the state are also up for election or re-election, so there’s a lot at stake.

Our judges wield a tremendous amount of power that is largely unchallenged.

They make critical decisions that affect our economy, our health care and our environment. They also have the ability to provide justice for those who have been wronged, and they are responsible for protecting our courts from lawsuit abuse.

That’s why it is imperative that voters get to know all the candidates before they head to the polls on Nov. 6.

Numerous national studies have shown most judicial races tend to be “low-information elections” that don’t draw a lot of attention from voters.

We need to reverse that trend.

The impact of judges can be felt on our lives everyday. Take, for example, the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling earlier this year that upheld the constitutionality of President Barrack Obama’s controversial health care plan, best known as Obamacare. Or the case they’ll be taking up soon to determine the legality of same-sex marriages. Their decisions impact everything we do, so don’t take your vote for granted.

Good judges are the foundation of any properly functioning judicial system, and we are fortunate to live in a state where we have the power to choose who represents us on state and district courts. That’s why it’s so important that voters get to know the candidates — learn about their judicial philosophies and the professional backgrounds they will bring to the bench.

It can also be very telling to find out who their campaign contributors are.

This information is publicly available through the Louisiana Ethics Administration’s website at www.ethics.state.la.us.

The bottom line is good judges really do matter, and so does your vote.

These elections are often decided by a very thin margin — sometimes within 100 votes or less. So don’t let someone else speak for you on election day.

Learn about the candidates and make an informed decision on Nov. 6.

Melissa Landry, executive director

Louisiana Lawsuit Abuse Watch

Baton Rouge

Comments

1) Comment by JeffryLaMonteSanford - 30/10/2012

It is quite a chore to learn anything about the Supreme Court election. The monied candidates run ads that don't tell us anything about their feelings on issues, The independent candidate (me) is running to talk about the issues and can't get any coverage. There are big issues facing this community insofar as a failure of the existing judiciary to provide a properly functioning criminal justice system. Leadership comes from the top. And the Supreme Court has been statistically proven to vote for its campaign contributors. What lawyer/judge in his right mind is going to bring that issue out? However, when our criminal justice system puts twice as many people in prison as any state in the nation and gives us the fastest rising murder rate in the non-war zone world, something must be said. And something must be heard. Candidates raving about their judicial experience must be defeated. Vote Jeffy Sanford. #30. Independent.

2) Comment by tradewinns - 29/10/2012

at least la. allows judges to run a campaign. i moved from fl, and there a candidate for a judgeship can not say anything negative about his/her opponents. nor can they imply something negative ("i will be at work every day, on time"). if found "guilty" of negative comments (truth doesn't matter) an ELECTED JUDGE can be DENIED his seat by the fla bar (a private organizations of lawyers). here at least, they can lie to you like most other politicians. the fortunate thing is the vast majority of voters never come into contact with those we trust to dispense justice so we do not know if they depense it the way we individually want it done. it would be nice if a legal interested group would keep score for us. i disagree with DMJ for that reason alone. "proven conservative= strict readings"; "for the people= liberal leaning" until something better comes along, this is all we have.

3) Comment by Whatnow - 29/10/2012

@tradewinns, I agree. I want to know a judge's leanings and success or failure before I vote.

4) Comment by DMJ - 29/10/2012

I voted against all judicial candidates who bragged about their political leanings. "Proven conservative" = Iosing my vote. Judges are supposed to be above petty partisan politics.

5) Comment by tradewinns - 29/10/2012

judges are the MOST important position on the ballot! they are the ones who decide what can be done and when, not your local politicians or the state ones, nor even the national ones.and yet most people know little to nothing about judges' races. i wish some group whose interest is the legal field (like the LLA group) would at least put out a list showing which judges are liberal, conservative, productive, unproductive etc. that would help "regular" folks who do not interact with the "justice" system.

6) Comment by gary - 29/10/2012

Ms. Landry failed to cite the favorable ruling for super pacs being able to donate unlimited amounts of money - right now both campaigns (R/D) are at one billion dollars spent - about 80% of that is from unknown billionaire/millonaires - basically folks like the Koch brothers and George Soros are bidding on the election. I wonder if the Louisiana Lawsuit Abuse folks are against those kind of rulings by the USSC?