Key findings from the Brennan Center's new edition of The Politics of Judicial Elections ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
 
This week, the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law released a new edition of The Politics of Judicial Elections, detailing spending in elections for state supreme court justices during the 2019-2020 election cycle. Since 2000, the Brennan Center has tracked over $600 million in spending on state supreme court elections.
 
This report details unprecedented levels of spending by big donors and interest groups to influence state judicial elections. This spending speaks to the power and influence of state supreme courts, which hear 95 percent of all cases in the United States and have a crucial role to play protecting fundamental rights and democratic principles.
 
Major findings of the report include:
 
  • Record-breaking spending in states and nationally. This cycle set an overall spending record of $97 million, 17 percent higher than the previous record set in 2004 (adjusted for inflation). It also nearly doubled the record for spending in a retention election, with a $9.9 million election in Illinois. Wisconsin saw its most expensive state supreme court race in 2019, and then broke that record again in 2020. North Carolina had its most expensive state supreme court race ever as well.
  • Interest group spending more than doubled since 2014. Interest groups spent a record $35 million on election activities, independent of any direct contributions to candidates themselves. In Michigan and Wisconsin, interest groups spent more money than the candidates themselves. Overall, interest group spending accounted for 36% of the total funds spent on state supreme court elections in 2019-20.
  • The biggest spenders included both long-time players and newcomers. Just as in past cycles, the Judicial Fairness Initiative (JFI) of the Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) got involved in the most races, spending $5.2 million across five states. But new groups entered the fray as well: in Illinois, two in-state billionaires funded $5.9 million in spending by Citizens for Judicial Fairness, and in Texas, in-state business interests, many from the oil industry, fueled $4.5 million of spending by the newly formed Judicial Fairness PAC.
When judges are called on to protect fundamental rights and hold the powerful to account, the public must be able to trust that they are independent from political and financial interests. The dark money and major spending detailed in this report compromise the ability of courts and judges to play their necessary role at a time when American democracy is being challenged.
 
 
 

 
Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law
120 Broadway, Suite 1750 New York, NY 10271
646-292-8310
 
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