The Committee delivered the following letter today to Court of Appeals Judge Pamela Goodwine, a candidate for the Kentucky Supreme Court.
Dear Judge Goodwine:
The Kentucky Judicial
Campaign Conduct Committee is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan group organized
to safeguard the integrity of the judiciary in Kentucky judicial elections. We
believe judicial elections are different from other elections, for good reason,
and should remain that way. We are concerned about the recent increase of
partisanship in judicial elections, as evidenced by our public statements in
2022 about the Northern Kentucky race for the Supreme Court (published on our
website, listed above).
We are likewise concerned
that Gov. Andy Beshear’s political action committee has endorsed your candidacy
for the Kentucky Supreme Court. He is Kentucky’s highest-ranking official who
is elected on a partisan basis, and is widely known as a Democrat, so we believe
that if you were to refer to his endorsement in your campaign, that would violate
the spirit of Section 117 of the Kentucky Constitution, which makes judicial
elections nonpartisan.
The intent of that
section is to separate the judiciary from partisan politics, and maintaining that
separation has long been a major interest of our Committee, which is made up of
Democrats, Republicans and independents. We have expressed our concerns to the
governor, and now we express them to you.
The Executive Branch
often appears before the Kentucky Supreme Court. This could present an
appearance of conflict, if not actual conflict, for any justice who was
supported by the sitting governor. While a justice may recuse from a case, the governor
appoints the temporary replacement justice. So, we think members of the
Executive Branch, especially the governor, should not be involved in judicial elections.
Now that the governor is involved
in your campaign, it is largely up to you what to make of his endorsement. While
you certainly have every right to use it, we believe doing so would further
blur the line between judicial and partisan elections, and have the effect of
eroding public confidence in the impartiality of the judiciary.
Our Committee may make a public
statement on this matter, but before we do that, we would like to hear from
you, either in writing, in person or an online meeting.
The Committee received the following response from Judge Goodwine this evening:
Throughout
my 25 years of dedicated service as a judge, I have earned respect from members
of all political parties as well as a solid reputation for serving with the
utmost honesty, integrity, ethics, impartiality, fairness and justice for all.
I am committed to continuing to demonstrate these principles on the Kentucky
Supreme Court and remaining unbiased in my decision making.
Having
served as a judge for over two decades and as a candidate for the Kentucky
Supreme Court, I take ethical considerations very seriously and take to heart
the importance of maintaining impartiality and upholding the integrity of the
judiciary. I have dedicated my life and career to serving with the highest
ethical standards and base each of my judicial decisions on the law and the
merits of each case.
The
voluntary endorsement of Governor Beshear is based upon my record of
impartiality, fairness and justice. “The governor believes that judges should
decide cases by the letter of the law and not by the letter of anyone’s party
registration,” Eric Hyers reported on behalf of Governor Beshear earlier this
year.
The
best and most qualified candidates receive endorsements from a wide array of
individuals and organizations based upon their records of exemplary service and
any person or organization could potentially be called before any member of the
judiciary.
My
steadfast commitment to the nonpartisan nature of the judiciary is evidenced in
my participation in events hosted by both Republicans and Democrats, including
the Jessamine County Republican Women’s Club meeting, Fayette County Republican
Party Reagan Day Dinner, Franklin County Democratic Executive Committee
meeting, and the Forward Together Dinner where Governor Beshear said of the
need for both parties to collaborate for the good of the Commonwealth “not
left, not right, but forward together!”
Upon
election to the Kentucky Supreme Court, I will continue to adhere to the
highest ethical standards and, if faced with a situation where my impartiality
was reasonably called into question, I would carefully consider the
circumstances and if necessary recuse myself to ensure the integrity of the
judicial process.
