As part of an effort to inform Florida voters about lower-profile judicial elections in August and November, the Florida Bar will release the results of a poll of its membership next month about more than 30 judicial retention elections.
The Florida Bar’s Constitutional Judiciary Committee (CJC) is overseeing multiple programs to improve voter understanding about judicial races in the upcoming primary and general elections. On state voters’ ballots will be 32 county court contests and 20 circuit court races involving scores of candidates, while merit retention questions for five state Supreme Court justices and 28 appeals court judges will be on the November ballot.
The bar encourages judicial candidates to submit self-disclosure statements and biographical information to the CJC, which puts the information on its elections page.
“These forms submitted by the candidates are intended to provide voters with information so that they can make a more informed decision about races that are generally not highly visible,” Florida Bar spokeswoman Leslie Smith told the Florida Record in an email.
CJC also publishes in English and Spanish its Guide for Florida Voters, which is provided to supervisor of election offices and county libraries throughout the state.
“It explains why it is important to vote, what judges do and the difference between an elected and appointed judge,” Smith said.
Florida statutes mandate that the names of justices on the state Supreme Court and appeals courts be placed on the ballot every six years so that voters can determine whether they should continue to serve on the bench. To help voters make those choices, the CJC conducts a poll of its members on whether the justices should be retained.
Two years ago, the CJC distributed 78,405 ballots to its members, and 2,518 ballots were returned, representing a 4.62% response rate, according to the bar. Attorneys polled are asked to weigh eight attributes of judicial candidates in their responses: quality and clarity of judicial opinions; knowledge of the law; integrity; judicial temperament; impartiality; freedom from bias or prejudice; demeanor; and courtesy.
The results of this year’s poll will also be sent to the news media once results are tallied up sometime in August.