Fundraiser for Davis in justice’s backyard looked bad

The Kansas Republican Party’s condemnation of a fundraiser for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Paul Davis held Tuesday in Topeka misstated some facts but showed the problem with such a gathering. Partisan politicking by judges is (regrettably) routine in places such as Sedgwick County, which elects members of its district bench. And the Kansas Code of Judicial Conduct says “members of the families of judges and judicial candidates are free to engage in their own political activity.” But especially at a time when the Kansas Supreme Court is under siege from the GOP, however unfairly, it looks bad for campaign fundraising to be going on in the backyard of a justice’s home, whether or not the candidate is present (he wasn’t). That Justice Carol Beier neither planned nor attended what she called “my husband’s event” does not help. – Rhonda Holman

This story was originally published September 25, 2014 at 7:03 PM with the headline "Fundraiser for Davis in justice’s backyard looked bad."