Media Guide Fifth Judicial District
Southern Illinois will see its first state Supreme Court election
in 12 years on the 2004 ballot. Many observers expect the race to
draw media attention, and campaign contributions, from across the
nation. Because Supreme Court elections are infrequent and because
we expect this race to garner national attention, the Illinois Campaign
for Political Reform has prepared this background information to
assist reporters and editors in covering the upcoming campaign.
The race will be important within Illinois because it may be the
last Supreme Court race for six years. The Illinois Supreme Court
consists of seven members elected from five districts for ten-year
terms. Six of the seats were filled in the 2000 and 2002 elections,
two by uncontested retentions and four by contested elections. In
2004, only one seat, from the Fifth Judicial District, will be on
the ballot. Unless there is an unexpected resignation or death,
there will not need to be another high court election until 2010.
Nationally, the region has already drawn the attention of business
interests concerned about jury verdicts in Madison and St. Clair
counties. Philip Morris and State Farm have lost court trials they
say will cost them billions of dollars, and the American Tort Reform
Association has issued a report blaming judges in the region for
the outcomes. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce told Forbes magazine
last summer that they plan to devote considerable resources in the
Fifth Judicial District race, and in February ran full-page ads
in national newspapers and in regions where they expect Supreme
Court races, including Illinois. The Chamber’s adversaries
among plaintiff’s attorneys and organized labor are expected
answer any attack in kind.
ICPR hopes that reporters will cover the Fifth Judicial District
race aggressively and thoroughly. To aid in newsgathering and reporting
efforts, this briefing outlines the district, the candidates, the
rules governing judicial elections, the history of campaign contributions
to judicial candidates, issues expected to play a role in the election,
and provides resources for reporters.
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