Election of Supreme importance to court's future

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0712/78823.html

Four Supreme Court justices enter the next term in their 70s, and any changes during the next presidential term could tip the balance of the court on some of the nation’s hottest social issues, including same-sex marriage, civil rights and abortion.

There’s also the often-overlooked aspect that the president nominates judges to fill the nation’s appellate and district courts, which produce some of the country’s most lasting decisions.

Attention to the Supreme Court has grown in recent years after a handful of high-profile rulings. Conservatives fumed over Chief Justice John Roberts’s unexpected health care opinion last month. Democrats were furious over the court’s 5-4 opinion in 2010 on Citizens United that led to a dramatic restructuring of the nation’s campaign finance system.

When the court reconvenes in October, justices will hear oral arguments on a major affirmative action case. There’s also the possibility of emergency hearings on voter ID laws that could determine November’s turnout and, conceivably, who wins the White House.

Also around the corner: potential Supreme Court cases involving same-sex marriage, the Voting Rights Act and even the perennial, go-to-your-corners brawls over abortion.