Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission - History

History

Under the original 1816 constitution of Indiana, judges were appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Indiana Senate, and would serve terms of six years. The system came to be criticized when Governor James B. Ray refused to reappoint two members of the Supreme Court for political reasons. A similar situation occurred during the term of Governor James Whitcomb when he also refused to reappoint two members because he thought they were too slow to resolve cases. In 1851, Indiana adopted a new constitution and the positions on the courts were made publicly elected offices, but that method too quickly came under criticism as the position became even more politicized. The courts remained publicly elected until a series of amendments were passed in 1970 and 1971 that reorganized the state courts and established the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission to replace the method of publicly electing judges. The new system was intended to make to judicial branch of the government more independent by giving it measure of control over selecting its own members, but limiting their power by making their choice subject to the approval of the governor.