A01=James L. Gibson
americans
Author_James L. Gibson
campaigning
campaigns
Category=JPHC
Category=JPHF
Category=LNAC
changes
controversial
courtrooms
courts
cultural studies
culture
elections
eq_bestseller
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eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
fairness
governing
government
impacts
impartiality
important issues
independence
judges
judicial
law
legal
legitimacy
perception
policy making
political science
politics
public perspective
running for office
social change
systems
united states of america
usa
vote
voting
Product details
- ISBN 9780226291086
- Weight: 369g
- Dimensions: 16 x 23mm
- Publication Date: 20 Sep 2012
- Publisher: The University of Chicago Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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In "Electing Judges", leading judicial politics scholar James L. Gibson responds to the growing chorus of critics who fear that the politics of running for office undermine judicial independence. While many people have opinions on the topic, few have supported them with actual empirical evidence. Gibson rectifies this situation, offering the most systematic and comprehensive study to date of the impact of campaigns on public perceptions of fairness, impartiality, and the legitimacy of elected state courts - and his findings are both counterintuitive and controversial. Gibson finds that ordinary Americans do not conclude from campaign promises that judges are incapable of making impartial decisions. Instead, he shows, they understand the process of deciding cases to be an exercise in policymaking, rather than of simply applying laws to individual cases - and consequently think it's important for candidates to reveal where they stand on important issues. Negative advertising also turns out to have a limited effect on perceptions of judicial legitimacy, though the same cannot be said for widely hated campaign contributions.
Taking both the good and bad into consideration, Gibson argues that elections are ultimately beneficial in boosting the legitimacy of courts, despite the slight negative effects of some campaign activities. "Electing Judges" will initiate a lively debate inside both the halls of justice and the academy.
James L. Gibson is the Sidney W. Souers Professor of Government at Washington University in St. Louis and Professor Extraordinary in Political Science at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. He is the author or coauthor of eight books, including Citizens, Courts, and Confirmations.
