Published: July 24, 2010
Measuring the Conservatism of the Roberts Court
Under Chief Justice John
G. Roberts Jr., the Supreme Court has moved to
the right. Below, some ways to measure the
shift.
How Often the Court Reaches Conservative Results
The Roberts Court has issued
conservative decisions at a slightly
higher rate than the Rehnquist or
the Burger Courts. It has overturned
precedent or struck down laws — two
measures of activism — less often
than previous courts, but those
decisions have been predominantly
conservative.
The Justice at the Court’s Center
The lines at right rate the ideology
of each justice’s decisions over
time, based on a comparison of all
of the justices’ voting records. The
dark line shows the ideology of the
median justice, who is often the
swing voter in 5-to-4 decisions.
Sources: For conservative voting
rates, Lee Epstein (Northwestern
University), William M. Landes and
Richard A. Posner (University of
Chicago Law School) and Harold J.
Spaeth (Michigan State University).
For justice
scores, Andrew D. Martin
(Washington University in St. Louis)
and Kevin M. Quinn (UC Berkeley
School of Law)