Are Appointed Judges Better than Elected Judges?
Nearly all of the individuals that the citizens of Pennsylvania have elected as judges have performed the judicial function well, and many of these judges have served with distinction. Is this just a fortunate coincidence? I think not. It is in the interest of the two major political parties to back highly qualified judicial candidates, and bar associations and the many press outlets in Pennsylvania do what they can to advise the public whether judicial candidates possess the necessary qualifications to be competent judges. It is true that, on extremely rare occasions, Pennsylvania state court judges have misbehaved in office, or have committed crimes while serving as judges, requiring that these judges be removed from office. Of course, on extremely rare occasions, federal judges have likewise been removed from the bench for misbehavior. An appointive system does not guarantee that the judges selected will be beyond reproach. Although an appointive system is often labeled “merit selec
