Tag: Justice Brent Benjamin

Outside Money in West Virginia High Court Race Nears $500K

Almost a half-million dollars in outside interest group money is influencing West Virginia’s five-way Supreme Court race through advertising.

Disclosures with the secretary of state show the Republican State Leadership Committee bought $269,200 in ads against Bill Wooton and Darrell McGraw, both former Democratic elected officials.

For the first time, the race is nonpartisan and will be decided during the May 10 primary.

Incumbent Justice Brent Benjamin, who was elected as a Republican in 2004 in a flurry of outside spending, called on the GOP group to withdraw the ads. Beth Walker has much of the GOP establishment’s support.

The West Virginia Chamber of Commerce bought $169,400 in ads supporting Walker. The West Virginia Business & Industry Council’s PAC bought $54,600 in ads backing her.

Wayne King, a Democrat, is also running.

State Supreme Court Rules Benjamin, Wooton Allowed Public Campaign Financing

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals has overturned the decisions of two Kanawha County Circuit Court judges and will allow Brent Benjamin and Bill Wooton to keep the monies their campaigns received under the state’s public campaign financing program. 

The decision comes a little more than six weeks before the judicial election.

 
All five of West Virginia’s Supreme Court Justices recused themselves from hearing the appeals of two cases originally brought by fellow Supreme Court candidate Beth Walker. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XwuMwHnEro

 
Walker sued Benjamin and Wooten after the State Election Commission ruled each could receive $500,000 in public dollars to fund their campaigns. Walker challenged the decisions in Kanawha County Circuit Court and two judges ruled in her favor. 

 
In front of a panel of appointed circuit judges, attorneys representing Wooten, Benjamin and the SEC argued the Election Commission should be allowed to decide if turning in a filing late in the program constituted disqualification or some other kind of penalty.

 
Walker’s attorney argued allowing candidates to miss deadlines– like the SEC allowed Wooten and Benjamin to do– took away from the integrity of the campaign financing program.

 
Beginning this year, all judicial elections are non-partisan and will be decided during West Virginia’s primary race on May 10.

Temporary Panel to Hear W.Va. Justice's Appeal

A panel of judges has been appointed to hear an appeal from a state Supreme Court justice in a campaign financing case.

The panel was announced Wednesday after all the Supreme Court justices recused themselves from hearing the appeal of Justice Brent Benjamin.

The state Election Commission decided in January to certify Benjamin for public campaign financing. A Kanawha County judge overturned the decision, ruling that Benjamin’s campaign missed filing and campaign contribution reporting deadlines.

The Supreme Court says appointed to hear the case are senior status judges Thomas Keadle and James Holliday and circuit judges John Hatcher, James Mazzone and Thomas Evans.

The appeal will be heard on March 23 at 10 a.m. and will be carried live on the West Virginia Channel and steamed live on WVPB’s YouTube Channel.

Candidate Looks for Stay While Appealing Campaign Finance Decision

Supreme Court Justice Brent Benjamin has filed for a stay in his case over state public campaign finance dollars.

On Friday, a Kanawha County Circuit judge ruled the State Election Commission had erred in awarding Benjamin the public monies last month and reversed the decision to award Benjamin the money.

The lawsuit was filed by fellow Supreme Court candidate Beth Walker who had challenged Benjamin’s qualifying donations before the SEC. 

In the filing requesting the stay, Benjamin asks the judge to delay the effects of his ruling while the campaign files an appeal with the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. The filing says there is little precedent for the court to follow because the statutes setting out the public campaign financing code are so new and haven’t been challenged. 

As of Tuesday afternoon, no appeal had been filed with the Supreme Court. 

Walker has also filed suit over the qualifying donations approved by the SEC that were entered by another Supreme Court candidate, Bill Wooten. That case is still pending in Kanawha County Circuit Court. 

Judge Hears Appeal of Supreme Court Campaign Finance Ruling

A Kanawha County judge has heard arguments in a case challenging the $500,000 of public campaign finance money state Supreme Court Justice Brent Benjamin was awarded for his re-election bid.

Beth Walker, who is running against Benjamin, originally challenged the public financing with the State Election Commission. The Morgantown lawyer argued that technical issues should have prevented Benjamin from being eligible for the money.

The SEC unanimously approved public financing for the Benjamin campaign earlier this month over Walker’s objections. Walker’s campaign appealed the ruling and is asking Circuit Judge Tod Kaufman to overturn it.

The Supreme Court election takes place on May 10.

Kaufman heard the oral arguments on Friday and said he would rule within several days.

 

Justice Benjamin to Use Public Funds for 2016 Re-election Bid

A West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals candidate has officially announced he will use public campaign financing in his re-election bid.

Justice Brent Benjamin is only the second candidate for the West Virginia Supreme Court to use the public campaign finance program put in place by lawmakers in 2010. Justice Allen Loughry was the first to use the funding and won his seat in 2012.

In previous months, Benjamin told West Virginia Public Broadcasting he was considering using public funds, but made his official announcement at a meeting of the Eastern Panhandle Business Association Friday.

Candidates can receive up to $525,000 in public financing for their races. The funds come from election-related civil penalties, donations and other revenue sources.

So far, Benjamin, the incumbent, has only one challenger for the 2016 race, Morgantown attorney Beth Walker.

2016 also marks the first time judges will run in West Virginia without party affiliations.

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