Ware, Stephen J. “The Missouri Plan in National Perspective,” 74 Mo. L. Rev. 751 (2009).

December 20, 2011

This article summarizes the fifty states’ methods of judicial selection and argues for a system that avoids both the undemocratic elitism of the Missouri Plan in selecting judges and the populist dangers associated with retention elections.

  • Judicial Election

    Judges are elected by popular vote.

  • Democratic Appointment

    Judges are appointed directly by a democratic body, or appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of some democratic body.