LITTLE ROCK (Legal Newsline) - Candidates for the Arkansas Supreme Court run with no party labels affixed to their names, but it’s not hard to assess where Gunner DeLay, 57, stands on the issues. As the Sebastian County Circuit Judge recently told the AP: “I think we should drop the pretense. My history is what it is.”
That history is one of a conservative serving first as a Republican state representative, from 1995-99, then in the Senate, from 1999-2003. In 2007, conservative Republican Gov. Mike Huckabee appointed DeLay to fill a two-year term as Sebastian County's prosecuting attorney.
On May 24, he will be challenging Justice Karen Baker, 58, who has been on the bench since 2010.
DeLay told Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that three things separate him from Baker: his transparency, accessibility and judicial philosophy.
"Throughout this campaign I have answered every question posed of me, both by the press and members of the public," he said. "On the other hand, my opponent has not made a single public appearance as a candidate, has been unavailable to members of the press, has failed to appear at candidate forums, and has refused to answer questions in voters' guides."
And he told the paper that he considers himself a constitutional conservative.
"My opponent is part of the liberal, left wing of the court, and I believe that is why she is hiding from the public," he said. "Our contrasting judicial philosophies will give voters a clear choice in this race."
His philosophy, accessibility and candidness recently earned him the paper’s endorsement.
“He uses common sense in his decisions,” the paper said of DeLay. “Which is why we'd recommend voting for Gunner DeLay in the Position 6 race for Arkansas Supreme Court.
Additional endorsements include former Republican U.S. Sen. Tim Hutchinson, Gun Owners of Arkansas, and noted Arkansas attorney and politician Sheffield Nelson.
Finally, in a recent Facebook post DeLay said that the likelihood that the U.S. Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that gave women a constitutional right to abortion, makes the Arkansas Supreme Court race the most important on the ballot.
“That issue will now go back to the states to be decided," he said. "It’s critically important you know the conservative choice as you make your decision at the polls."
DeLay and his wife, Robin, have four children and two grandchildren. They reside in Fort Smith.