Fifth District Appellate Court Justice Barry Vaughan formally announced his candidacy to retain his seat on the Court, vowing to "keep liberal Chicago politics out of our courtrooms."
Vaughan will compete in the Republican primary set for next June with Greenvllle attorney Tom DeVore and Fourth Judicial Circuit Judge Michael McHaney.
“All of us have seen how divisive political agendas have started to creep into every facet of our lives," Vaughan said in his announcement last week outside the Fifth District Court in Mt. Vernon. “That cannot be allowed to happen to the justice system.”
“Keeping liberal and activist agendas out of the courtroom and making sure that our system is fair for everyone—not just elites—is one of my core principles. I believe that everyone who sets foot in my courtroom should have their voice heard and get a fair shake.”
The candidates are vying for the permanent seat vacated by Justice David Overstreet, who was elected to the Illinois Supreme Court last year.
Vaughan, of McLeansboro, simultaneously is an elected circuit judge in Hamilton County, of the Second Judicial Circuit. His appointment to the Fifth District came at the recommendation of Overstreet to fill the seat that had been occupied by Judge Mark Boie, who was elected to a permanent seat on the court last November.
In addition to Hamilton County, the Second Judicial Circuit includes Crawford, Edwards, Franklin, Gallatin, Hardin, Jefferson, Lawrence, Richland, Wabash, Wayne and White counties.
Vaughan was first elected circuit judge in Hamilton County on the Republican ticket in 2002 and was retained in 2008, 2014 and last November.
Prior to having served as a trial judge, Vaughan was a solo practitioner, defense attorney and prosecutor.
Vaughan says he is the only candidate in this race who has been a prosecutor.
“This experience has earned the respect of my colleagues and the public,” Vaughan said. “That respect, and my experience, sets me apart from the other candidates competing for this seat.”
Vaughan says that he also is the only candidate in the race who is a lifelong conservative Republican.
McHaney was elected circuit judge in 2010 on the Democratic ticket. He told WJBD radio earlier this year: “That was 10 years ago. I am now one of millions and the best way I know to answer it is to quote from one of our greatest presidents….I didn’t leave the Democrat party, it left me.”
Vaughan said that he has spent a lifetime "defending Southern Illinois values."
“And while I’ve always followed President Reagan’s ‘11th Commandment,’ never speaking ill of my fellow Republicans, I’m not sure my opponents qualify. They’ve endorsed Democrats, been appointed as Democrats, or run for office as Democrats as recently as just three years ago.”
Vaughan is a past president of the Fairfield Lions Club, the Hamilton County Rotary Club, the Wayne County Bar Association, and the Hamilton County Fair Association. He has been married for 32 years to his wife, Kimberly, and they have three children—Grant, Landon, and Kylee.