Harris seeks
high court’s speedy
ruling on guv's race

The mayor's attorney argues
that a delay "imposes a disability"

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By Leila Fujimori
lfujimori@starbulletin.com

Attorneys for Mayor Jeremy Harris have asked the state Supreme Court to expedite his appeal of a ruling last week that he should have resigned last year when he began to actively campaign for governor.

In his motion filed yesterday, Harris' attorney Robert Klein argued that delaying the appeal "imposes a disability that impinges on the rights of voters and candidates to choose and be chosen."

Circuit Judge Sabrina McKenna's decision came March 11, just four months from the deadline for filing nomination papers and certification of eligible candidates by the chief elections officer, Klein wrote.

He said the ruling could also affect other public officials running for a different office, including Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono and City Councilmen Jon Yoshimura and Duke Bainum.

Harris suspended his gubernatorial campaign March 12 after McKenna's ruling and announced he would appeal the judge's order.

McKenna then held an emergency hearing and stayed her March 11 ruling to preserve the status quo until the Supreme Court took up Harris' appeal.

Harris has contended he had until July 23, when he has to file nomination papers for the governor's race, to resign under the state resign-to-run law.

Russell Blair, a retired state district judge and former state senator, had sued Harris in Circuit Court, saying state law required him to resign as mayor after he filed his gubernatorial organizational report last year with the state Campaign Spending Commission.

Despite the stay, Klein said Harris is prevented from making campaign expenditures because of the threat that the Circuit Court will order him to return all contributions received from the time he was allegedly required to resign.

Klein also said McKenna's order conflicts with a previous Circuit Court judge's ruling in a 1987 case involving then-city Councilwoman Marilyn Bornhorst.

In that case the judge ruled Bornhorst was not required to resign until she filed nomination papers, and an appeal to the Supreme Court was dismissed in 1988.

Attorneys for Blair and the city agreed to shorten the time -- a 19-day period -- for filing legal briefs in the appeal process.