chapter 26
...................................................................................................................................................JUDICIAL
INSTITUTIONS
...................................................................................................................................................james l. gibson
Legal institutions throughout the world have become increasingly powerful.
Tate and Vallinder ( 1995 ) refer to this as the ‘‘judicialization of politics’’ while
also recognizing and acknowledging the ‘‘politicization of judiciaries.’’—by judi-
cialization they mean the transfer of political disputes from the political arena to
courts and legal institutions. Because courts in every corner of the world are being
asked to decide explosive issues of politics and law, these institutions have achieved
a prominence—and a level of controversy—perhaps never before seen.
The stunning role of the judiciary in the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election is
just one example of the inXuence of courts in politics. On Friday, December 3 ,
2004 , the Ukrainian Supreme Court nulliWed the second presidential election of
November 21 which had resulted in an apparent victory for Viktor Vanukovych.
Calling for a new presidential vote, the Court concluded that the November
election violated a number of articles of the constitution governing the electoral
process. To the surprise of almost everyone, Ukrainian politicians accepted the
Supreme Court decision and new elections were launched. As a result Vicktor
Yushenko now governs as the president of Ukraine. That a court in aXedgling
democracy would succeed with this level of political stakes, in a country not noted
for its obdurate commitment to the rule of law, is a breathtaking development.
- I gratefully acknowledge the useful research assistance of Marc Hendershot and Briana Morgan on
this chapter.