Group now seeks direct election of judges
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St. Louis Post-Dispatch: James Harris says his group plans to only seek signatures for one of the two conflicting ballot initiatives, depending on which one gets through the court process. He says he doesn’t necessarily have a preference between the two initiatives, but said, “There are a lot of people that seem to like the idea of direct Democracy.” What’s clear is that a group opposed to how Missouri selects many of its top judges wants to change that process. But how they plan to do it got muddy today, as the group filed a second ballot initiative that conflicts with its first one.
ShowMe Better Courts, run by James Harris, a former aide to ex-Gov. Matt Blunt, filed a ballot initiative today that would change Missouri’s constitution so that judges are elected directly by voters. Previously, the group filed a ballot initiative that would put judicial selection in the hand of the governor, with Senate approval, much like the federal system. In a news release, Harris blamed the state’s trial lawyers for controlling the current judicial selection process. “We need better courts, and that is something we can only do through reform,” Harris said. He didn’t say in the news release which of his two proposals he preferred. He could not be reached for comment. The Missouri Bar Association and other critics have consistently criticized Harris for failing to point to any real problems with Missouri’s judicial system, in terms of bad judges or bad rulings.
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