Overview
- Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders appointed attorney Cory Cox as a special justice to replace recused Justice Barbara Webb in two Arkansas Supreme Court appeals tied to special elections, and the Democratic Party of Arkansas with four Pulaski County voters moved to disqualify him.
- Opponents cite the U.S. Supreme Court’s Caperton v. Massey decision to argue that choosing the judge in one’s own case creates an unconstitutional risk of bias.
- Sanders made the pick soon after the chief justice requested a temporary replacement, and the challengers ask that Lt. Gov. Leslie Rutledge appoint a substitute under a state rule that shifts that power if the governor does not act within 30 days.
- The motions point to Cox’s ties to Sanders, noting he is a registered lobbyist, gave $50,000 to her inaugural, served as a special justice in 2023, and received a 2024 appointment to the Arkansas Tech University board.
- The court canceled planned oral arguments and will decide on the briefs, and a plaintiff in a related case has asked to dismiss it as moot because the special elections have already been held.