A state court judge has rejected a freshman Kansas congressman’s request to remove the Topeka area’s prosecutor from a criminal election fraud case against the lawmaker.
Shawnee County District Judge David Debenham said in a ruling this week that attorneys for Rep. Steve Watkins failed to show that District Attorney Mike Kagay had “an axe to grind” in filing three felony charges against Watkins.
Both Watkins and Kagay are Republicans, but Watkins argued that Kagay was colluding with Watkins’ main primary opponent because they shared a campaign consultant. Watkins lost his GOP primary race to State Treasurer Jake LaTurner.