As Gov. Laura Kelly weighs her next pick for the Kansas Supreme Court, we thought we would give you the ballots that showed how the nominating panel voted on the candidates it recommended.
The panel of five lawyers and four nonlawyers — Mikel Stout, Linda Weis, Terrence Campbell, Frances Gorman Graves, Lenin Guerra, Robert Hayworth, Dennis Hedke and Gloria Farha Flentje — recommended three candidates to the governor.
The commission’s votes were opened to the public for the first time this year because of a new state law that made them subject to the state’s open-meetings statute.
The committee recommended Kansas Court of Appeals Judge Thomas Malone, Assistant Solicitor General Steven Obermeier and former deputy counsel to the Supreme Court Keynen Wall.
The candidate picked by the governor will replace former Kansas Chief Justice Lawton Nuss.
Wall, Obermeier and Malone were among the leaders throughout the voting on Jan. 17.
In the first round, the panel voted to choose six of the 17 candidates in the field.
In the second round, the commission voted for up to five candidates.
In the third and final round, the panel voted for up to four candidates.
After Round 1, Wall led all candidates with nine votes.
He was followed by Obermeier, Malone and 13th District Chief Judge David Ricke. They received six votes each.
After the second round, Wall led again with nine votes, followed by Malone, Obermeier, Ricke and lawyer Kristen Wheeler with six votes each.
Wall led for a third consecutive round with nine votes, followed by Obermeier with eight and Malone with seven.
Finishing just outside the list of finalists were Ricke with six votes and Wheeler with four votes.
Dennis Depew, who was a finalist for the vacancy that came open with the retirement of Justice Lee Johnson, didn’t make it out of the first round of balloting when he garnered three votes.
Here are the ballots from each of the nine members of the nominating commission plus bio capsules on each of the candidates.
Frances Graves
Bartlett
Appointed by Gov. Laura Kelly
Term expires 2023
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Russell Keller
Michael Leitch
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Linda Weis
Manhattan
Appointed by former Gov. Sam Brownback
Term expires 2022
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Daniel Cahill
Randall Hodgkinson
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Gerald O. Schultz
Garden City
Elected by lawyers in 1st Congressional District
Term expires 2022
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Dennis Depew
Thomas Malone
David Ricke
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Thomas Malone
David Ricke
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Terrence Campbell
Lawrence
Elected by lawyers in 2nd Congressional District
Term expires 2023
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Michael Leitch
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Robert Hayworth
Stilwell
Appointed by Brownback
Term expires 2020
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Dennis Depew
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Dennis Hedke
Andover
Appointed by Brownback
Term expires 2021
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Dennis Depew
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Gloria Farha Flentje
Wichita
Elected by lawyers in 4th Congressional District
Term expires 2021
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Michael Leitch
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Marcia Wood
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
David Ricke
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Kristen Wheeler
Lenin V. Guerra
Olathe
Elected by lawyers in the 3rd Congressional District
Term expires 2020
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Michael Joyce
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Keynen Wall
Mikel Stout
Wichita
Chair of the commission
Elected by lawyers statewide
Term expires 2021
Round 1 (Vote for up to six candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
David Ricke
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Round 2 (Vote for up to five candidates)
Randall Hodgkinson
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
Lyndon Vix
Keynen Wall
Round 3 (Vote for up to four candidates)
Thomas Malone
Steven Obermeier
Keynen Wall
