Two south Arkansas lawyers who finished atop a three-way judicial race in the state Court of Appeals' District 5 are facing off again on Nov. 8 in a runoff election to fill the seat of departing Judge Mike Kinard.
James McMenis, 68, a former military lawyer from Smackover, faces Mark Klappenbach, 57, a public defender from Fordyce, in the runoff after neither earned a majority of the vote in the March 1 judicial general election, which also included Job Serebrov, a state administrator.
Nonpartisan judicial general elections are held alongside partisan primary votes in Arkansas. If no candidate earns a majority, the top two finishers compete in a runoff during the next general election.
In the March 1 election, McMenis earned a narrow 42 percent plurality of the vote over Klappenbach, with 39 percent, and Serebrov with 19 percent.
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"I don't think anything has changed. I think we're still neck and neck," Klappenbach said.
Judges are elected to eight-year terms on the Court of Appeals, the state's second-highest appellate court, and earn $161,500 a year. There are seven districts on the Court of Appeals, and District 5 is one of two -- along with District 7 -- that only elects one justice to the 12-member court.
The district is composed of 13 counties, stretching east from Lafayette to Ashley counties and north to Grant County.
Kinard was appointed by then-Gov. Mike Beebe in 2014 to fill the vacancy created when Justice Robin Wynne was elected to the Arkansas Supreme Court. Kinard is ineligible to run for the seat.
In separate interviews, both candidates pointed to their legal experience to distinguish themselves from their opponent.
"I'm 10 years older and I've got at least 10 years more practice," said McMenis, a former Democratic candidate for the state House of Representatives.
A graduate of the University of Virginia Law School and the Army's Judge Advocate General school, McMenis said he mostly practices criminal law, but also has experience in civil, juvenile and probate courts.
The 1st, 2nd and 7th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution -- protecting the freedom of speech and religion, gun rights and a trial by jury, respectively -- are in the most need of protecting, McMenis said, adding that many people take for granted the latter.
"[Trial by jury] is a very important right," McMenis said. "It may not seem as important today as it once was, but it certainly was in 1789 when they were working on the Constitution."
Klappenbach, a former deputy prosecutor in Dallas County, described himself as a "conservative." He said people are often surprised to hear that he is now a public defender. It is his Christian beliefs, Klappenbach said, that inspire him to ensure people have access to courts. He said it is a message he could take to the Court of Appeals if elected.
"I think right now [Court of Appeals judges] look for reasons not to decide on an issue. They often throw out a case on technical grounds," Klappenbach said.
Klappenbach is a graduate of the University of Arkansas in Little Rock's William H. Bowen School of Law.
After a busy summer that kept him off the campaign trail, Klappenbach said, he is trying to ramp up his efforts to attract voters, while adding that they have two very similar choices.
"We're both pretty close, we're both members of the [National Rifle Association], we're both Baptists, and pretty strong conservatives," Klappenbach said. McMenis agreed, and added that they are both also members of Gideons International. While he didn't dispute the conservative label, McMenis said he does not use the term to refer to himself in public statements, so as not to appear partisan.
"I don't believe judges should be making law, they should be interpreting them within the confines of the statute and the Constitution," McMenis said.
McMenis also said geography likely was to play a role in the race, with many voters opting to go with the native-son candidate.
"In [Dallas] County, they basically say, 'Well, you showed us some good credentials but Mark's mother taught us in Sunday School," McMenis said. "So it's an uphill battle to get those voters to change their mind."
Neither candidate claimed the support of Serebrov, the third-place finisher in the March election. He could not be reached for comment.
Metro on 10/31/2016