Although a specific legislative proposal has not yet been drafted, Ridge favors merit selection for appellate judges only, officials said. Voters would continue to elect judges to Courts of Common Pleas. Ridge asked his former general counsel, Paul Tufano, to help draft a proposal and build support. In the last 15 years or so, there's been a crescendo of interest in the subject. A lot of work's been done that we're going to build upon.
History suggests a tough sell ahead.
Supporters of appointing judges acknowledge that they essentially have to persuade people to give up the right to vote. Ultimately, I'd feel more comfortable with the electorate rather than a small group of politicians in Harrisburg making the decisions. Greenleaf said he favored allowing judicial candidates to speak out on issues, to rotate the ballot positions so all candidates get an equal shot at being first, and to eliminate the line on the ballot that says what county a candidate comes from. Such changes would increase voter turnout in judicial races and lead to a well-informed electorate, he said. Turnout was only 18 percent in Philadelphia, where the appellate judgeships were at the top of the ballot.