Even as the new state Supreme Court chief justice said Tuesday that he fears more "nasty" judicial elections in Minnesota's future, a Golden Valley man was in court trying to further loosen limits on judicial campaigning.

Chief Justice Eric J. Magnuson said in a speech in Duluth that he favored a system of judges' elections that would avoid what he called "well-heeled special interests attempting to manipulate the judicial process."

In his first speech since his June 4 installation, Magnuson, 57, agreed with former Chief Justice Russell Anderson that Minnesota is at risk for the kind of negative, expensive elections that turn voters off.

"It only takes one big, nasty election campaign to seriously damage the hard-won public confidence our judiciary currently enjoys," he said.

But in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, an attorney for prospective Supreme Court justice candidate Gregory Wersal argued Tuesday that Minnesota judicial rules unfairly restrict his ability to campaign and raise funds.

"He cannot turn over in his bed and ask his wife for a contribution to his campaign," said attorney James Bopp. Specifically, he cannot personally solicit funds unless the audience is 20 people or more.

Also, under Minnesota rules, Wersal cannot endorse candidates for other offices while he is a candidate for a judicial position.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 2005 struck down many of Minnesota's restrictive rules on judicial campaigns. Judge candidates are now

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free to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money, seek partisan endorsements and tell voters where they stand on issues.

That worries Magnuson, the state bar association and a commission led by former Gov. Al Quie. They back a system known as "retention elections," in which the governor initially would appoint judges. Then voters would decide whether to kick out existing judges or keep them. There would be no contested elections.

Bopp argued that that is hardly less political.

"All it does is it moves the politics away from the people and to the political elites," he said after the hearing.

An effort in the Legislature this spring to put the retention system on the ballot as a state constitutional amendment died in committee. It could be reconsidered next year.

U.S. District Judge Ann D. Montgomery said she would issue a ruling "fairly soon."

Emily Gurnon can be reached at 651-228-5522.