Ky. R. Sup. Ct. 4.4

As amended through November 7, 2024

Rule 4.4 - Campaign Committees

(A)A judicial candidate- may establish a campaign committee to manage and conduct a campaign for the candidate, subject to the provisions of this Code. The candidate is responsible for taking reasonable measures to ensure that his or her campaign committee complies with applicable provisions of this Code and other applicable law.*

(B)A judicial candidate shall direct his or her campaign committee:

(1)to solicit and accept only such campaign contributions* as are permitted by law;

(2)not to solicitor accept contributions for a candidate's current campaign more than 200 days before the applicable primary or general election;

(3)not to solicit contributions after a general election (see KRS 121.150 ); and

(4)to comply with all applicable statutory requirements for disclosure, reporting, and divestiture of campaign contributions.

Ky. R. Sup. Ct. 4.4

Amended by Order 2018-17, eff. 11/29/2018; adopted by Order 2018-04, eff. 1/31/2018.

Comment

[1] Judicial candidates are prohibited from personally soliciting* campaign contributions or personally accepting campaign contributions. See Rule 4.1(A)(8); see also Williams-Yulee v. Fla. Bar, 135 S. Ct. 1656 (2015) (upholding ban on personal solicitation of campaign contributions by judges or judicial candidates). This Rule recognizes that judicial candidates must raise campaign funds to support their candidacies, and permits candidates, other than candidates for appointive judicial office, to establish campaign committees to solicit and accept reasonable financial contributions or in-kind contributions.

[2] Campaign committees may solicit and accept campaign contributions, manage the expenditure of campaign funds, and generally conduct campaigns. Candidates are responsible for compliance with the requirements of election law and other applicable law, and for the activities of their campaign committees.

[3] At the start of a campaign, the candidate must instruct the campaign committee to solicit or accept only such contributions as are in conformity with applicable law.

[4] By limiting the period in which a candidate's committee may solicit and accept contributions to 200 days prior to a primary or general election, Canon 4.4(B)(2) "is focused exclusively on the solicitation and receipt of money - the activities most likely to harm public confidence in the judiciary. Additionally, the regulation prohibits the solicitation and receipt of funds only during the period of time that most implicates the government's stated interests, recognizing that contributions that are not proximate in time to an election can increase the appearance of impropriety and the risk of actual bias." O'Toole v. O'Connor, 802 F.3d 783, 789, 791-92 (6th Cir. 2015) (affirming denial of motion for preliminary injunction to bar enforcement of judicial canon imposing temporal restriction on when campaign committees can solicit and accept contributions in connection with claim that the canon violated the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment); see also Gable v. Patton, 142 F.3d 940, 950-51 (6th Cir. 1998) (holding that provision barring contributions by persons other than the candidate to his or her campaign during a 28-day window immediately prior to a gubernatorial election did not violate the First Amendment).

[5] The intent of the Rule is to permit the candidate's committee to solicit and accept campaign contributions during an election year (including the short time period in the immediately preceding year) without regard to whether a judge or judicial candidate actually has a primary election, since that fact is unknowable until the filing deadline in January. In addition, if a vacancy occurs in an election year after the time prescribed by statute for filing with an actual primary election, i.e, the filing deadline is in August with a general election in November, the 200-day limitation does not apply, and a committee may solicit and accept campaign contributions during that year, subject to the limitation in Rule 4.4(B)(3), provided the candidate has filed for election or filed statement of intent with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance.