Election Day could mean big changes for Southern high courts
States across the South are holding pivotal supreme court elections this year. The outcomes could affect cases involving voting rights and criminal justice, and could also bring unprecedented diversity to the courts.
Special interests are preparing to spend big on the races. That includes national partisan groups who are preparing for the post-census redistricting next year.
In Louisiana, two Republicans — Judge Jay McCallum of the state's 2nd Circuit Court of Appeal and Judge Shannon Gremillion of the state's 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal — are facing off for a Supreme Court seat. McCallum is backed by the Louisiana Association of Business & Industry (LABI), the state's largest business lobby and a perennial big spender in state elections. Gremillion has received financial support for past campaigns from John Carmouche, a lawyer known for suing the oil and gas industry and spending heavily to back high court candidates.
Louisiana has seen special-interest spending on judicial elections soar in recent years. Last year, for example, Republican Justice Will Crain was elected to the state's high court after raising $1 million in campaign cash, including donations from LABI and fossil fuel companies. A political action committee funded by trial lawyers spent the most on campaign ads in the race. The amount of special interest money in the state's judicial races has led to calls for reform.
https://www.facingsouth.org/2020/08/election-day-could-mean-big-changes-southern-high-courts
