Incumbent state Rep. Nima Kulkarni is back on the ballot for the primary, according to a ruling from the chief justice of the state Supreme Court, Justice Louis Vanmeter.
However, the ruling also says that the results of this race cannot be certified by the Jefferson County Board of Elections, the Kentucky Board of Elections, or the Secretary of State until a court orders the certification to take place. Further hearings on the ultimate disposition of the challenge will be heard in June.
The ruling by Vanmeter overturns a ruling by the Kentucky Court of Appeals that Kulkarni was not eligible, due to an issue with her filing papers. Anyone filing to run in a partisan election is required to have two witnesses from the candidate’s party sign their application – but one of Kulkarni’s witnesses was a registered Republican at the time she signed the application.
The witness changed her party registration before the paperwork was certified by the Secretary of State’s office.
The challenge to Kulkarni’s candidacy was filed by Dennis Horlander, who once held this seat. However, he is not running for the seat in this election. Instead, William Zeitz, a truck driver, is the other name on the ballot. If Kulkarni is ultimately declared ineligible in the upcoming court hearings, Zeitz would become the state rep for that seat by default. (Zeitz is not involved in the lawsuit.)
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