Fair Districts PA held a virtual town hall on January 6th about the PA legislature’s efforts to create regional districts to elect justices who are currently elected statewide.
Despite the potential for these judicial districts to be gerrymandered like PA’s state legislative districts, the PA legislature passed a constitutional amendment with this change — without holding hearings and over bipartisan opposition — in the 2019-2020 session.
You can visit FDPA’s website for more info about judicial gerrymandering here: https://fairdistrictspa.com/updates/say-no-to-judicial-gerrymandering
Carol Kuniholm, Chair of Fair Districts PA, will give a presentation followed by a panel discussion with Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts President Deborah Gross and others.
In the 2019-2020 session, the PA General Assembly passed a constitutional amendment that would empower our state legislature to create judicial districts for PA higher courts. Candidates for Supreme Court and other appeals courts would be elected by voters in these districts rather than running statewide. If that amendment passes again early this next session, it could go to a public vote as soon as the 2021 primary election.
In effect, the judicial district amendment would undermine constitutional checks and balances among our branches of state government and would open the door to a new, unprecedented version of gerrymandering. No other state allows legislators as much power in drawing judicial districts.
The bill was pushed through without public hearings, expert testimony or any hint of due diligence, with just minutes spent in discussion in both House and Senate committees.
We will need to speak out strongly in opposition before the bill is hurried through again early in the new year.
This town hall provides background and discussion of a proposed PA constitutional amendment to elect appellate court judges from newly created judicial districts. Introduction by League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania President Terrie Griffin. Presentation by Carol Kuniholm, Chair of Fair Districts PA, explaining the proposal and providing background and context. Panel moderated by FDPA legislative director Pat Beaty with Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts President Deborah Gross and Judge Lawrence Stengel, former United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. More background information is available at https://www.fairdistrictspa.com/updat…
