Elect or appoint? Candidates for Cook court clerk differ on how to fill job

Diane Shapiro, Republican candidate for clerk of the Cook County circuit court, says she wants to be the last person elected to that office.

"It's time for an appointed clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County," Shapiro said during a recent joint interview with Democrat incumbent Dorothy Brown, who is seeking her fifth term as circuit court clerk in the Nov. 8 election.

The clerk is responsible for maintaining the records in one of the world's largest unified court systems.

Shapiro says she wants to "depoliticize" the office, which employs about 1,600 people. Brown says politics have nothing to do with operations in the clerk's office. She favors maintaining the position as an elected one.

"This position needs to be accountable to the people you're serving, not the people who appoint you," Brown said.

She says the clerk, who maintains the records, must be independent from the judges who make the record.

"The circuit court is the court of first impression," Brown said. "That record is the only record we have."

Shapiro proposes circuit court judges vote on a potential nominee who would be recruited "via a civil service testing process." She says her proposal promotes accountability because judges would have the option of replacing a clerk who fails to perform the duties. Shapiro retired in 2009 after 30 years as a Cook County adult probation officer.

"In 2016 there is no reason for a Democrat or a Republican to be running the second-largest unified court system," Shapiro said.