Craft & Sheppard's Supreme Court Review

First Amendment, Elections

In N.Y. State Bd. of Elections v. Lopez Torres, the Court upheld New York law governing selection of judicial candidate by political parties.  A judge refused to make patronage hires, and the party did not nominate her at the next delegate convention.  The procedures under state law required a prospective judicial candidate to secure a number of party members’ signatures in a short time frame and favored the party.  The candidate was not denied the right to vote and had no First Amendment associational right to become a party’s candidate.  Critics claim that the decision will serve to make judges and judicial races more partisan, resulting in less judicial independence.  Supporters counter judges ought to be accountable to the political process.  In Wash. State Grange v. Wash. State Republican Party, on a facial challenge, the Court refused to strike a statute on First Amendment freedom of association grounds.  State law let a prospective candidate self-designate party affiliation; the two top vote-getters from the primary, regardless of party affiliation, were to run against each other in the general election.  No factual record was developed, and the law could be construed in a constitutionally permissible way.