Subject: Re: [EL] Query about judicial "representativeness"
From: "Gaddie, Ronald K." <rkgaddie@ou.edu>
Date: 1/31/2011, 7:11 PM
To: Dan Meek <dan@meek.net>, Election Law <election-law@mailman.lls.edu>

The query came in the context of Oklahoma's appeals courts (civil, criminal, supreme). All are elected on retention ballots, but judges are named from distinct, multi-county residency districts of unequal population.

Ronald Keith Gaddie
Professor of Political Science
Editor, Social Science Quarterly
The University of Oklahoma
455 West Lindsey Street, Room 222
Norman, OK  73019-2001
Phone 405-325-4989
Fax 405-325-0718
E-mail: rkgaddie@ou.edu
http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/G/Ronald.K.Gaddie-1
http://socialsciencequarterly.org
From: election-law-bounces@mailman.lls.edu [election-law-bounces@mailman.lls.edu] on behalf of Dan Meek [dan@meek.net]
Sent: Monday, January 31, 2011 8:43 PM
To: Election Law
Subject: [EL] Query about judicial "representativeness"

In Oregon, trial court judges are elected on a county-by-county basis.  Many Oregon statutes assign special duties for reviewing legislation and/or certain state agency actions to the trial court for the county (Marion) where the capitol (Salem) is located.  Marion County is home to fewer than 10% of Oregon residents.  Thus, trial court judges elected by less than 10% of the Oregon electorate are assigned by state law to take statewide actions that no other trial court judges can take.

Is there a legally cognizable problem here?

Dan Meek
10949 S.W. 4th Ave
Portland, OR 97219
503-293-9021 phone
866-926-9646 fax
dan@meek.net



On 1/31/2011 6:31 PM, john.k.tanner@gmail.com wrote: 
No.  Judges are not representatives in that sense.  I believe that the tendency is to adjust districts based on caseload, 








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-----Original Message-----
From: "Gaddie, Ronald K." <rkgaddie@ou.edu>
Sender: election-law-bounces@mailman.lls.edu
Date: Tue, 1 Feb 2011 02:21:00 
To: rick.hasen@lls.edu<rick.hasen@lls.edu>; Election Law<election-law@mailman.lls.edu>
Subject: [EL] Query about retention elections

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