When we first talked about writing an “Election 2012” blog, I felt that we should include regular discussions about other elections than just for president. To that end, I’ve included some comments on the Public Act 4 (Emergency Financial Manager) ballot issue, and blogged about the Michigan U.S. Senate race between Debbie Stabenow and Pete Hoekstra.
Today, I want to mention the three seats up for the Michigan Supreme Court this year. As you know, Michigan has a somewhat odd way of nominating and electing its Supreme Court Justices. We have party nominations, but then have non-partisan general elections. The state political parties do play a role in the general election, and I’ve already seen a TV ad for the three nominees of the Democratic party (sponsored by the state party).
This election is particularly interesting because three seats out of the total of seven are up at the same time. Moreover, voters will actually be making separate choices on the ballot because one election will complete a term that ends in two years. The choices of the two major parties for this seat are incumbent Brian Zahra (Republican, appointed by Governor Snyder last year) and Democrat Sheila Jackson.
Two slots will be for a full 8 year term. In these contests, incumbent Stephen Markman and Colleen O’Brien (Republicans) will be running against Connie Kelley and Bridget McCormack (Democrats). I know these are officially nonpartisan races, but there still seems to be quite a bit of partisanship in these elections. (By the way, 3rd parties also have nominated candidates who will appear on the ballot).
In the face of the presidential race, the Supreme Court elections likely won’t generate much interest or attention. However, the result could change the overall partisan or ideological make-up of the Court, and for that reason alone should be considered important. As such, I wonder if Michigan shouldn’t consider adopting a new way of selecting judges. After all, we elect state district court, court of appeals, and supreme court justices, but I wonder how many voters really know who they are voting for, and why. I also know that there’s usually about a 25% ballot “roll-off” for these races, which means about 1 in 4 voters who votes for the top of the ballot race (president) doesn’t vote at all for the court races. Moreover, for those voters who do vote, do they really know that much about the candidates or issues? Hard to imagine.
John Klemanski
Today, I want to mention the three seats up for the Michigan Supreme Court this year. As you know, Michigan has a somewhat odd way of nominating and electing its Supreme Court Justices. We have party nominations, but then have non-partisan general elections. The state political parties do play a role in the general election, and I’ve already seen a TV ad for the three nominees of the Democratic party (sponsored by the state party).
This election is particularly interesting because three seats out of the total of seven are up at the same time. Moreover, voters will actually be making separate choices on the ballot because one election will complete a term that ends in two years. The choices of the two major parties for this seat are incumbent Brian Zahra (Republican, appointed by Governor Snyder last year) and Democrat Sheila Jackson.
Two slots will be for a full 8 year term. In these contests, incumbent Stephen Markman and Colleen O’Brien (Republicans) will be running against Connie Kelley and Bridget McCormack (Democrats). I know these are officially nonpartisan races, but there still seems to be quite a bit of partisanship in these elections. (By the way, 3rd parties also have nominated candidates who will appear on the ballot).
In the face of the presidential race, the Supreme Court elections likely won’t generate much interest or attention. However, the result could change the overall partisan or ideological make-up of the Court, and for that reason alone should be considered important. As such, I wonder if Michigan shouldn’t consider adopting a new way of selecting judges. After all, we elect state district court, court of appeals, and supreme court justices, but I wonder how many voters really know who they are voting for, and why. I also know that there’s usually about a 25% ballot “roll-off” for these races, which means about 1 in 4 voters who votes for the top of the ballot race (president) doesn’t vote at all for the court races. Moreover, for those voters who do vote, do they really know that much about the candidates or issues? Hard to imagine.
John Klemanski
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