Monday, October 22, 2012 —
RALEIGH — If Republicans control the legislature and governor’s office next year, 2012 could be the last time that North Carolina voters go to the polls to select judges without party labels.
State Republicans have made no bones about their distaste about selecting judges on a nonpartisan basis.
Former GOP state chair Tom Fetzer noted earlier this year that many Republicans believe the legislature’s decision in 2004 to drop the Rs and Ds next to judicial candidates’ names came because of Republican successes in judicial elections.
The argument for dropping partisan labels on the election ballot was that the law shouldn’t be partisan.
This year, North Carolina voters will decide four appellate court races without those labels.
Supreme Court Justice Paul Newby, who is seeking a second eight-year term, is being challenged by Sam Ervin IV, who currently sits on the Court of Appeals.
Newby is a former federal prosecutor and worked as general counsel for Cannon Mills Realty in Kannapolis. Ervin previously served on the State Utilities Commission and worked in private practice in Morganton.
Three state Court of Appeals seats are up for grabs.
Incumbent Judge Cressie Thigpen faces Raleigh lawyer Chris Dillon; incumbent Judge Linda McGee is being challenged by David Robinson, a Raleigh business transaction lawyer; incumbent Judge Wanda Bryant is running against Cabarrus County District Court Judge Marty McGee.
Linda McGee has been on the court since 1995, while Bryant took her seat in 2001. Marty McGee has been a District Court judge since 2000.
Although those partisan labels won’t appear on the ballot, all three of the incumbent Court of Appeals judges are Democrats and all three of their challengers are Republicans.
In the Supreme Court race, Newby is a Republican and Ervin a Democrat.
Those party distinctions may not show up in ads or flyers promoting the candidates either.
But a so-called Super PAC headed by Fetzer and funded by some prominent Republican activists has already begun promoting Newby’s candidacy in a humorous TV ad that emphasizes a reputation for being “tough but fair.”
Ervin has responded with his own ad saying that independent groups are spending money to “buy a seat on the state’s highest court.”
Neither ads nor partisan labels may do a lot to educate voters.
Even a review of a candidate’s background isn’t going to show how he or she ruled on property rights or criminal appeals or how often political ideology appeared to cloud his or her judgment.
Various groups do produce voter guides, including one from the state Board of Elections which provides background and statements from the candidates. The pdf file can be downloaded at http://www.ncsbe.gov/content. aspx?id=29.
It’s a busy world, though. Many voters never see these kinds of guides.
That’s why, in recent years, a judicial candidate’s sex and place on the ballot have been the biggest predictors of electoral success.
Party labels might change that. It’s not clear that those labels would produce more qualified judges.
Opinion & Letters to the Editor
Related Photos
-
Scott Mooneyham
Discussion
Four Appellate Court seats to be decided
- Opinion & Letters to the Editor
-
-
Shining stars in a time of darkness
The acts of kindness shown during the aftermath of Thursday night’s storm is a nice sign for humanity.
-
School’s Out!
We took our last exams and then we sent the kids home for the summer. It is a happy day for both students and teachers. It has been a good school year, but it is always good to send the students home for summer vacation. Now we have a couple of days to clean our rooms, turn in our final grades, complete some paperwork and say good bye to our colleagues.
-
Many factors explain current economic situation in China
When I was growing up in the 1950s, China was our political enemy. My uncle, who lived next to my family, had fought the Chinese army in Korea, so nothing positive was said about China during family gatherings.
-
Remembering Our Heroes
Last weekend was Memorial weekend. It was three glorious days away from work. I spent almost every waking minute outside; I was actually still sitting on the front porch at midnight. The days were warm, not too hot, and the nights were cool. I know we won’t get another weekend like this until sometime late in the fall. In my opinion, it was a taste of heaven on earth. I hated to see it end.
-
Harristown News
Friends and Family Day
Spaulding Chapel AME Zion Church will celebrate Friends and Family Day on June 9. -
Remembering the Merritts
If you mention Merritt’s Store anywhere around Chapel Hill, most often you will hear something like, “Oh yes. Best BLTs I’ve ever tasted.”
-
We are Uniquely Made
Earlier this week the seniors at our school had one final hurdle to jump before graduation. They had to present their senior projects before panels of community members. Each room had four adults: the moderator and the three judges. You can be sure the students were quite nervous, but they usually do a great job. If they have practiced and prepared then they should experience success.
-
Ronald McDonald House of benefit to us all
On Tuesday, Stanly County Managers Association members heard a presentation concerning the Ronald McDonald House in Charlotte.
-
Celebrating small businesses and continuing new ways of communicating
Some stories are worth mentioning again.
-
Editorial: Seizure of AP phone records insult to independent press
This amounts to spying on an American news organization -- common practice in dictatorships but scary conduct in a democratic system that prizes the public value of an independent watchdog press.
- More Opinion & Letters to the Editor Headlines
-
Shining stars in a time of darkness
