SCOTUS Politics With Video

Recent judicial confirmations have laid bare the political divisions present in the nation’s highest court. In the Dole Institute Student Advisory Board’s spring program, two experts on judicial confirmation, law and legal institutions examine politicization of the Supreme Court. Joining the conversation are Lee Epstein, Ethan A.H. Shepley Distinguished University Professor at Washington University, and Stephen Ware, KU professor of law.

Election of 19 African American Female Judges in Texas

The election of 19 African American female judges in Harris County, Texas, is the subject of a story in Marie Claire.  It says the population of Harris County, which includes Houston, is 43% Hispanic, 20% black, and 30% white. The November election increased the number of black female judges from eight to 25 of the 75 elected judgeships.

New Book on Judicial "Merit Selection" Nominating Commissions

"Judicial Merit Selection: Institutional Design and Performance for State Courts" is a new book by Greg Goelzhauser, a Political Science Professor at Utah State University.

The publisher, Temple University Press writes: "In Judicial Merit Selection, Greg Goelzhauser amasses a wealth of data to examine merit selection’s institutional performance from an internal perspective. While his previous book, Choosing State Supreme Court Justices, compares outcomes across selection mechanisms, here he delves into what makes merit selection unique—its use of nominating commissions to winnow applicants prior to gubernatorial appointment."