Independence Party gubernatorial candidate Tom Horner pledged to make the selection of judges less political.
"The judiciary is the most trusted branch of government," Horner said Thursday in a news release. "We should protect the high esteem in which it is held by appointing the best men and women to the bench, holding them accountable to voters while not allowing partisan politics to compromise the public's trust in the judiciary."
Horner backs a plan by former Gov. Al Quie, chairman of the Minnesota Citizens Commission for the Preservation of an Impartial Judiciary.
Under the group's proposal, governors would appoint judges based on a pool of suitable candidates chosen by selection commissions. After three years of service, a separate body would determine whether the judge was qualified or not. At that point, voters would have the final say.
If a judge gets the boot along the way, the governor would appoint a successor.
Horner said he would chose judges who exhibited the proper legal experience, temperament and ethics.
"There will be no litmus tests in a Horner administration," Horner said. "It won't matter who you worked for, who you supported, what party you caucused with, or whether you were involved in politics at all. If you are an upstanding member of your community who has demonstrated a keen legal mind and tremendous ethics and leadership, you will be given consideration for an open judgeship."
