Judicial races: Cut the blarney

Two years ago, Washington voters watched state judicial elections reach a new level, or let's say depth, in politics.

A group of citizens became so troubled by the deceitful and unfair campaign propaganda in the state Supreme Court races, they formed the Washington Committee for Ethical Judicial Campaigns to try to help voters separate the truth from the blarney.

In 2006, Washington was thrust into the latest national trend in judicial races with special interests pouring in money to rouse those sleepy judicial races that for years languished at the bottom of your ballot. Suddenly, incessant TV ads and mailbox-choking fliers put judicial races front and center, and too much was unfair and deceitful.

This was an especially troubling development since differences between judicial candidates are hard enough to discern because of rules prohibiting them from discussing how they might rule on cases.

The citizens committee intends to help. Its members have the credentials and diversity, geographical and otherwise, to give their efforts instant credibility statewide. Among the members are former state Appeals Court Judge William Baker; former King Broadcasting Company President Eric Bremner; Oscar Eason Jr., chairman of the Washington State Commission on AfricanAffairs; and Judy Maleng, a community volunteer and widow of former King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng.

For starters, the group will ask candidates for state Appeals Court and Supreme Court positions to sign a pledge promising to conduct themselves "in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity, independence and impartiality of the judiciary."

Members of the committee also will be watching — closely — campaign materials and advertising in those races. When they find material that hurts the integrity of the courts or that is unfair, the group will ask the judicial candidate to withdraw it. If a third party paid for the ad, as happened often two years ago, the committee will ask the candidate to disavow it.

We are not sold on the committee's candidate pledge, but we are eager to see how it works. This group could provide voters the kind of service on judicial campaigns that the Municipal League of King County does for voters on local issues.

The committee's efforts and attention are welcome, especially if this year's judicial campaigns heat up.