John Marshall Harlan II vs. Hugo Black

[A18]

Who wins? Map?

[Peter]

I think that if these men were alive today, there is at least a chance that both could be members of the other party. Nonetheless, I will use the red for Black and Blue for Harlan.

Black's KKK history would hurt him in the modern-day democratic states as would his inevitable opposition to Roe.

Here's a guess:



Harlan 311
Black 227

[A18]

Don't you think Harlan would oppose Roe too?

[Speed of Sound]

I would suppose Harlan II, though depending on the campaign, it could be close.

[A18]

Also... I'm not sure how much Black's past KKK affiliation would hurt him, given his support for civil rights on the Court.

[Emsworth]

Black's judicial record would have undoubtedly been controversial. His church-state decisions were very unpopular with the conservatives; his rejection of the so-called right to privacy would be unpopular with the liberals. One must also remember that, when he was a Senator, Black was an ardent liberal; he would surely remain with the party of Roosevelt today.

On the whole, Harlan's views are somewhat less unpopular. He did vote with the majority in Griswold, but this should bring him more support from liberals than opposition from conservatives.

Thus, I would say that Harlan would win. I would, of course, vote for Black.