Attorneys for Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach (R) have filed their response to Democratic Senate nominee Chad Taylor’s lawsuit demanding that Kobach take his name off the ballot in November.
In the filing, Kobach’s lawyers argue that the Kansas Supreme Court is not the proper venue for the lawsuit, which Taylor filed after Kobach ruled that he must stay on the ballot despite Taylor’s announcement that he would withdraw from the race.
They argued that the factual dispute between Taylor and Kobach’s office over whether a Kobach deputy approved Taylor’s withdrawal letter — which Kobach later said was insufficient — meant that a lower district court should hear the case, rather than the state’s top appellate court.
If the state supreme court does hear the case, Kobach’s attorneys wrote, the case should be concluded swiftly — by Sept. 20 — so that absentee and military ballots can be mailed out on time.
They also argued that Kansas Democrats would be required under state law to fill Taylor’s spot on the ballot, even if Taylor himself were removed.
The full filing is below.
