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The Case of the Failed Nomination: Subtexts in a State Legislature
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 September 2013
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Just nine days after what was to have been a routine confirmation hearing, John S. Arnick, a 23-year member of the Maryland House of Delegates, withdrew his name from consideration for a position on the Baltimore County District Court. Arnick became the first gubernatorial nominee for a judgeship since 1968 who did not receive confirmation. This event touches upon a number of underlying subtexts of interest to political scientists, especially those who follow state legislatures and their processes—judicial confirmation procedures at the state level, prevalence of “insider-vs.-outsider” mentality within a state legislature, persistence of sexism in the environment of a state capital, impact of women legislators on the political culture and procedures, citizen attentiveness to the political process, and the consequences of the growing use of radio shows and telephone calls to influence the actions of elected officials.
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- Copyright © The American Political Science Association 1993
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Notes
1. The Maryland General Assembly adjourned April 12, 1993, without enacting any of those bills.
2. Although the proposed change in the motto failed, creative lawmakers took another tack to deal with a motto perceived by many as sexist. The House Ways and Means Committee, two weeks before the end of the session, voted to change the translation and insert into the state law books: “strong deeds, gentle words.” This legislation also failed.
3. The numerous research in this area includes Jewell, Malcolm E. and Whicker, Marcia Lynn, “Women as State Legislative Leaders,” paper given at the Southern Political Science Association meeting in Tampa, Florida, 1991 Google Scholar; Thomas, Sue, “Evaluating the Impact of Women Legislators on Political Policies and Processes: The Content of Success,” paper given at the Midwest Political Science Association meeting, Chicago, 1991 Google Scholar; “The Impact of Women on State Legislative Policies,” paper given at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Atlanta, Georgia, 1989 Google Scholar; Hill, David B., “Political Culture and Female Political Representation,” Journal of Politics, 43 (No. 1–2): 159–168 CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Norris, Pippa, “Women in Congress: A Policy Difference?” Politics, No. 1, 1986 Google Scholar.
4. This aspect of the case was discussed at length by Babington, Charles and Tapscott, Richard, in “Among Md. Legislators, Loyalty Is Name of Game,” The Washington Post, February 21, 1993, pp. B1, B5 Google Scholar.
5. The Washington Post, February 21, 1993, B5 Google Scholar.
6. According to a poll taken February 26-28, of 811 registered voters who said that they regularly vote in elections, 56% of the respondents did not believe that Arnick should have been confirmed. Mason-Dixon Political/Media Research Inc., of Columbia, conducted the poll which was reported in The Evening Capital, March 5, 1993, p. 1 Google Scholar.