Asked to order Democrats to pick new US Senate candidate, top Kansas court sends case to trial judge
The Kansas Supreme Court agreed to hear on an emergency basis a lawyer’s case seeking a writ of mandamus to get his name off the November ballot as a candidate for the U.S. Senate.
It ruled last week that Chad Taylor had filed appropriate paperwork invoking a state statutory mandate and said the Kansas secretary of state hence must print the ballot without Taylor’s name.
But on Tuesday, the Kansas Supreme Court took a more measured approach in a related case, saying that it needed more information before it could decide a complaint filed last week. That lawsuit seeks a court order requiring the state Democratic party to select a replacement candidate for Taylor almost immediately so the new candidate’s name can be printed on the November ballot, the Kansas City Star reports.
Explaining that it needed a better record before it could decide the issue, the supreme court sent the suit to Shawnee County District Court. That means the Kansas ballot almost undoubtedly will be printed without any Democratic candidate listed for that particular Senate seat, according to the newspaper.
