Nevada Judiciary

The campaign contribution change is the result of the passage of AB 505 by the 2007 Legislature, which moves the filing period for candidates for most judicial offices to the first two weeks in January.

Under the new rule judicial candidates cannot collect contributions until the filing period has closed.

The justices noted that with the filing period moved to January, challenged candidates will have sufficient time after the filing period closes to collect necessary contributions to conduct their campaigns. The Primary Election will be held Aug. 12, 2008.

The justices also explained that restricting campaign fundraising for unchallenged candidates is warranted because it only takes one vote for those candidates to win election.

In recent elections, about 60 percent of District Court candidates draw no opposition, yet these candidates usually begin collecting contribution beginning in January of election years in recognition of the possibility that someone may file against them by the mid-May deadline.

When the Legislature changed the filing period, it set the stage for the revision of the rules governing judicial campaign fundraising. Rules governing judges are the responsibility of the Supreme Court because it is a separate branch of government. All seven justices agreed to the rule changes.

The changes will be in effect for the 2008 elections, when the majority of judges in the state are up for election. A copy of the rule changes is available on the Supreme Court website at www.nvsupremecourt.us.

• Allowed judges to hold membership in clubs and committees affiliated with political parties, although they may not hold leadership roles or advertise endorsements by partisan political organizations,
• Allowed those seeking judicial office to declare their candidacy at any time,
• Clarified that judicial candidates may accept campaign contributions from attorneys who appear before the court or from parties with matters pending before the court,

"The Supreme Court put a great deal of effort into drafting the rule changes," said Justice Mark Gibbons. "We spent much time analyzing First Amendment issues in light of recent decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court on judicial campaign speech."

"We also considered all input from judges and other parties," he said. The Supreme Court held a public hearing on the issue on June 21.

While the new rules affect state and county judges, it does not have the same impact on Municipal Court judges who face election in odd numbered years, as they do in southern Nevada. Municipal races generally have different filing periods than state and county races. The new rule allows Municipal Court judicial candidates in odd numbered years to accept contributions 120 days before the primary election. But, if at the closing of the filing period, a Municipal Court candidate is unopposed, no additional contributions may be accepted.

The justices noted that the contribution rules may eventually need to be altered should the Nevada Legislature in 2009 again approve a resolution to change the way judges are selected and voters approve the measure in the 2010 election.

ADKT413, Order Amending Canon 5 (pdf)