The Supreme Court is considering a challenge to the Delaware Constitution’s anti-patronage provisions. On the opening day of its term in October, an eight-member court heard oral argument in Carney v. Adams. In that case, the court must decide whether the state’s constitutional provisions requiring a politically balanced state judiciary violate the First Amendment.

The Delaware Constitution provides that no more than a “bare majority” of the judges on the state’s highest courts may be associated with one political party. The same constitutional provision also includes the “major party” rule, which requires the other seats on the bench be reserved for affiliates of the other major political party.  See Del. Const. art. IV. Section 3. Together, these balancing provisions seek to promote neutrality in the Delaware courts.