Pennsylvania continues to hold elections to select judges to serve on the commonwealth’s trial and appellate benches. As Justice Seamus McCaffery reminded us in remarks he made at a recent public appearance, judicial elections allow a tattooed, former hippie, Harley-Davidson-riding, larger-than-life character (who also happens to be a very talented jurist) to serve on the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, whereas a selection process consisting of nomination by the governor and confirmation by the Legislature might not.
Pennsylvania’s current process for selecting appellate judges usually results in the selection of highly qualified candidates for the bench. But this does not necessarily demonstrate that the electorate is capable of determining which of two (or more) candidates for an appellate judgeship has the better qualifications. Rather, the major political parties have done a good job of ensuring that the candidates who win the primary election possess the necessary qualifications to be good appellate judges.
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