Get to know your judges

As you learn about all the candidates for various offices this year, the most important ones are the ones that most Montanans know the least about. The politicians you need to do the most research on are not the would-be congressmen, governors, or even legislators. It’s the judges.

Although they claim to be above the political fray, judges in Montana are in fact politicians. From the district courts to the state Supreme Court, they’re elected. They have to run campaigns, raise money, and their fate is ultimately decided by voters. Increasingly, judges are also inappropriately wading further into the role of policymakers, acting not as mere arbiters of legal disputes. That makes it all the more important for voters to do their homework. 

The stakes over who Montanans put on the bench have never been higher. In just the past handful of years, judges have: