RALEIGH N.C. (WNCN) – A UNC law expert said the controversy surrounding Friday’s Supreme Court decision has impacted public trust in the federal judicial system.
Professor and Director for the school’s center for civil rights, Ted Shaw, said while he doesn’t agree with the Supreme Court’s decision, he expected it after a more conservative shift over the past few years.
“This can’t come as a surprise to anyone,” Shaw said. “This court, I think, is more partisan than any court that we can remember.”
A Gallup poll released this week shows overall public confidence in the Supreme Court at record lows, driven by democrat and independent responses.
However, Republicans slightly increased their trust in the court from last year to now.
“Just as the country is deeply divided, a Supreme Court that is both deeply divided but is also hyperpolitical,” Shaw said. “The consequence is that Americans, when they’re pulled now have the lowest degree of confidence in the Supreme Court.”
While Supreme Court justices are appointed by the President, justices in North Carolina are elected by the people and run on party tickets.
Two seats on the North Carolina Supreme Court are up for election this November.
The North Carolina Bar Association polled 630 voters and 853 lawyers in the state about their trust in the state’s judicial system from appellate, to lower courts.
The NC Bar Association found the vast majority of people who responded believe political parties have a fair or great amount of influence on NC judges.
A majority of respondents also said they would prefer non-partisan elections for judges.