Arkansas Supreme Court Justice Karen Baker said this week that she will run for re-election in May - one of three races for seats on the high court.
Baker defeated Circuit Judge Tim Fox and Evelyn Moorehead in 2010 to complete the term of Justice Annabelle Clinton Imber, who retired in 2009.
Imber was the first woman elected to the court, when she ran unopposed in 1996. She was re-elected twice before announcing her retirement in September 2009.
Baker, 50, served on the Arkansas Court of Appeals for 10 years before she was elected to the state’s high court. She announced her plan for re-election in a written statement.
“I consider it a privilege to serve the citizens of the State of Arkansas and wish to continue on the court of last resort for all Arkansans,” Baker wrote.
The justice said in an interview that she wants to continue to expand the court’s use of electronic filings and make the courts more accessible to the public.
“I feel like we’ve made progress during my time on the court,” Baker said.
She doesn’t yet have an opponent. The election is May 20.
Baker, of Clinton, received a bachelor’s degree from Arkansas Tech University and a law degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s W.H. Bowen School of Law.
The justice served as a circuit and juvenile-court judge before she was elected to the Court of Appeals.
Baker also serves as the Supreme Court liaison for the Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program, Continuing Legal Education Board and the State Board of Law Examiners.
Baker defeated Fox in a runoff in 2010 after receiving about 60 percent of the vote.
Two other seats on the seven-member court are up for election this year.
Court of Appeals Judge Rhonda Wood is seeking the position currently held by Justice Cliff Hoofman, who was appointed by the governor to complete the term of Robert Brown.
Brown retired in 2012, and Hoofman is barred by the Arkansas Constitution from running for the vacant seat.
Court of Appeals Judge Robin Wynne is running for the seat held by Justice Donald Corbin. Corbin was first elected to the court in 1990 and is not running for re-election.
Wood and Wynne do not yet have announced challengers in their races.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 01/03/2014