Kansans will vote next year on whether to elect Supreme Court justices or keep the current merit-based system. Kansas lawmakers narrowly passed a constitutional amendment that will be on the August 2026 ballot. The state has seven Supreme Court justices. If approved by voters, three judges would be elected in 2028. Two more would be […]
kansas supreme court
Posted inState Government
Lawmakers debate whether voters should elect Kansas Supreme Court justices
Robert Edmunds won three judicial elections in his home state of North Carolina. He was elected to the state Court of Appeals before serving two terms on the state’s Supreme Court. Edmunds said he never would have risen through the ranks without elections. He didn’t have any political connections to the governor. He didn’t run […]
Posted inState Government
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoes ban on gender-affirming care for minors. Is the bill legal?
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly has vetoed a bill banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors. That could include puberty blockers, hormone treatment or gender-affirming surgeries for transgender youth. Under the bill, doing so could get a doctor sued and cost them their license. This is just the latest veto fight over gender-affirming care for minors. Kansas […]
Posted inState Government
Kansas nearing ‘constitutional crisis’ as small-town lawyers become a scarcity
Kansas judges in rural counties struggle to find qualified attorneys to represent defendants in cases where the right to a lawyer is guaranteed. “We are approaching a constitutional crisis,” said Kansas Supreme Court Justice Keynen “K.J.” Wall. Forty-seven rural counties are legal deserts, or areas without adequate access to legal help. One-third of rural attorneys […]
Posted inState Government
Kansas Supreme Court will decide what’s just an arcade game, and what’s a gambling device
Chad Thompson once won $1,500 from the game Dragon’s Ascent, and it only cost him 10 cents to play. The game looks like something from an arcade. Players work a joystick and a button to shoot at the dragons swarming the screen. The bigger the dragon, the bigger the payout for a kill. Thompson, from […]
Posted inCivic Engagement, DIY Democracy
Wichita’s noise ordinance struck down by Kansas Supreme Court over First Amendment issue
Takeaways: An ordinance used to convict a Wichitan protesting police brutality was ruled unconstitutional Friday by the Kansas Supreme Court. The ordinance criminalizes “noisy conduct tending to reasonably arouse alarm, anger, or resentment in others.” That’s just too broad, the state’s high court ruled. “We conclude the noisy conduct provision within is unconstitutionally overbroad because […]
Posted inKansas State Government
Kansas Supreme Court to decide if Wichita’s ‘noisy conduct’ ban violates First Amendment
It’s not what Gabrielle Griffie said, but how she said it, the city of Wichita argued before the Kansas Supreme Court on Sept. 12. More specifically, how many people she said it with, and their reasons for saying it. Griffie was convicted of a misdemeanor — unlawful assembly — after leading a protest against police […]
Posted inState Government
Kansas Supreme Court to decide if Wichita’s ‘noisy conduct’ ban violates First Amendment
It’s not what Gabrielle Griffie said, but how she said it, the city of Wichita argued before the Kansas Supreme Court Sept. 12. More specifically, how many people she said it with, and their reasons for saying it. Griffie was convicted of a misdemeanor — unlawful assembly — after leading a protest against police brutality […]
Posted inElections, Kansas State Government
Kansas Supreme Court election: What’s at stake?
In more than 60 years, no Kansas Supreme Court justice has been ousted by voters. But that hasn’t stopped campaigns from trying. And while no such campaign has made itself known yet this election cycle, one expert told The Beacon that attack ads might begin to appear around mid-October, and would likely oppose keeping the […]