Voters Should Not Forget the Judges

Now that the dust has settled in this presidential election year, I wonder how many people voted for the judicial candidates listed on their ballots? Most of the time and attention this year was focused on the presidential race – many voters may not have known those who were running for judicial office. But it is important to discover and compare the qualifications of the candidates for yourself.

Not every state allows people the level of involvement that we have in Ohio in deciding who will serve as a judge. Twenty-nine states have appointed judges while 21 have elections. Ohio elects its judicial candidates in partisan primaries, and then has general elections where party affiliation is not shown on the ballot. The Governor appoints if there is a judicial vacancy, but the people of Ohio will then vote in the next election. To run for the Supreme Court, appeals court, common pleas court, or municipal and county courts, a person must be a practicing lawyer for six years.

Many classrooms conducted mock elections this year for president. This experience, I hope, encourages the students to vote when they reach age 18 and participate in our democracy. Participation in Ohio includes electing judges.

To have your voice heard in choosing who serves on our courts, in each election find the judicial races at the bottom of the ballot and make sure to vote for every race. But before you vote, do your homework and research who you are voting for.

Teens Can Sink Teeth into Halloween-Themed Case

Periodically, I try to let teachers know of online materials that may assist them in social studies classes, particularly those materials that relate to the judiciary. Here is an interesting idea from the U.S. courts website, and it’s timely given that Halloween is just around the corner.

An interactive educational program on the First Amendment and social media designed for high school students uses a real case about the U.S. Supreme Court’s school newspaper censorship decision (Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier) and applies it to a fictional student vampire club.

The Fangtastics go to court when high school administrators drive a stake through the heart of their online postings. Was it a case of protected critical satire or dangerous cult activity?

In the classroom, instructors may choose an Oxford-style debate or a full-fledged courtroom drama to examine opposing sides of the social media/free speech issue. It’s all in fun, especially as Halloween approaches. For more on social media and the First Amendment – and where vampires stand on the issues – take a look at these resources.

Additional reality-based courtroom simulations on a variety of topics of interest to high school students are also available.

Could You Pass the U.S. Citizenship Test?

Although most of us become U.S. citizens through birth, people born outside the United States can do so through the naturalization process.

Becoming a naturalized citizen involves preparing for a 100-question civics test, although an applicant is typically asked to answer only 10 questions during the oral exam. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, an applicant must answer 6 out of 10 questions correctly to pass the civics portion of the test.

I bring this up because I read a story recently in Parade magazine about former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s iCivics program, for which I am a representative in Ohio. A citizenship questionnaire was part of that article.

Would your civics knowledge allow you to become a U.S. citizen? Check out these questions by clicking the link below—some are pretty tough— see how many you get right.

http://www.parade.com/export/sites/default/news/quiz2/citizenship1.html