The Oklahoma House of Representatives passed a resolution yesterday that will ask voters to require Senate confirmation of Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Court judges. The Journal Record reports:
The House voted 60-37 for the bill and sent it to the Senate for final consideration in spite of opponents who said it would replace Oklahoma's nonpartisan appointment process with the gridlocked, highly politicized process of Washington, D.C., where partisan disputes in the U.S. Senate often delay judicial appointments.The article also mentions that similar legislation was vetoed last month by our governor.
Currently, state district court judges are directly elected, and civil and criminal appeals court judges and Supreme Court justices appear on a retention ballot at the end of their appointed term. But workers' comp judges are appointed by the governor and never appear on a ballot.
