Judicial Elections 10-Point Quiz

1. Under the Minnesota Constitution judges are to be:
	A) Appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate.	Click on correct answer.
	B. The most qualified trial judges.
	C) Directly elected by the people of their area.
	D) Nominated by the Legislative Branch.
2. An attorney running against a sitting judge can expect:
	A) To win.	Click on correct answer.
	B) Reprisals from the judge to whom he lost the election.
	C) To raise enough money for a credible campaign.
	D) The voters to be well informed on the type of judge he would be.
3. Most voters feel overwhelmed and under-informed when voting for the many judges on the ballot. This could be greatly mitigated by:
	A) Amending the Minnesota Constitution.	Click on correct answer.
	B) Placing term limits on judges
	C) Placing an inquiry to the Minnesota Bar Association
	D) Electing our district judges only in our own counties
4. The word incumbent behind a name on a ballot is:
	A) Only found on judicial ballots in Minnesota.	Click on correct answer.
	B) Greatly informative and assures quality jurisprudence.
	C) Almost a guarantee of quality in the talent pool of sitting judges.
	D) Provides meaningful information on the quality of a judge.
5. Currently in Minnesota, judges, lawyers and powerful special interests are trying to remove your right to recruit, support and campaign for candidates to run against sitting judges while asking you to surrender your right to vote for judges. This proposal:
	A) Is contained in House File 1666.	Click on correct answer.
	B) Is called retention elections.
	C) Is called the Missouri Plan.
	D) Installs a system where more Minnesotans will be killed by lightening annually than sitting judges will be replaced in retention elections.
	E) All of the above.
6. In Arizona, under retention elections since 1974, how many incumbent judges have been replaced?
	A) 96	Click on correct answer.
	B) 61
	C) 22
	D) 2
7. In 1988, Arizona Superior Court Judge Phillip Marquardt sailed through a retention election even though he had a conviction for:
	A) A. DUI.	Click on correct answer.
	B) Burglary.
	C) Shoplifting.
	D) Pot
8. If Minnesotans give up their constitutional right to directly replace judges, how many of Minnesota's 315 judges are likely to be replaced annually?
	A) About 10%.	Click on correct answer.
	B) Roughly a quarter of those facing a retention election.
	C) About one half of a judge, or one every other year.
	D) About 50 judges
	E) There is no way to reasonably estimate the effect of retention elections
9. If you saw this question on your ballot in November, what might you reasonably conclude? "Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to strengthen the impartiality of the judiciary by providing that all judges be appointed by the governor from a list of candidates nominated by a merit selection commission, in the manner provided by law, with their continuation in office determined at a retention election after a public, nonpartisan evaluation of their performance by an independent performance evaluation commission?"
	A) That retention elections are the best thing since sliced bread.	Click on correct answer.
	B) That a 64-word run-on sentence written for someone with 38 years of formal education is intrinsically deceptive.
	C) That the part about losing our constitutional right to directly elect judges forever was left out.
	D) That somehow lifetime judicial appointments are a good thing.
	E) All of the above.
10. A proposal exists to improve judicial elections by having the word incumbent removed from all judicial ballots, have district judges elected only by the people in the county they serve and retain our constitutional right to directly elect judges. These ideas are found:
	A) In the Platform of the DFL Party and the Democratic National Committee.	Click on correct answer.
	B) In the mission statement of the Minnesota Bar Association.
	C) In a June 30th executive order from Governor Dayton.
	D) In the Platform of the Republican Party of Minnesota.
	E) In two or more of the above.