Rule 4.3. Activities of Judges Who Become

Activities of Judges Who Become Candidates for Public Office (a) Upon becoming a candidate for an elective public office either in a party primary or a general election, a judge shall resign from judicial office, unless permitted by law to continue to hold judicial office. A judge may continue to hold judicial office while being a candidate for election to or serving as a delegate in a state constitutional convention. (b) Upon becoming a candidate for an appoint­ ive public office, a judge is not required to resign from judicial office, provided that the judge complies with the other provisions of this Code. (Effective Jan. 1, 2011.) COMMENT: (1) In campaigns for elective public office, can- didates may make pledges, promises, or commitments related to positions they would take and ways they would act if elected to office. Although appropriate in public campaigns, this manner of campaigning is inconsistent with the role of a judge, who must remain fair and impartial to all who come before him or her. The potential for misuse of the judicial office and the political promises that the judge would be compelled to make in the course of campaigning for elective public office together dictate that a judge who wishes to run for such an office must resign upon becoming a candidate. (2) The ‘‘resign to run’’ rule set forth in subsection (a) ensures that a judge cannot use the judicial office to promote his or her candidacy and prevents postcampaign retaliation from the judge in the event the judge is defeated in the election. When a judge is seeking appointive public office, however, the dangers are not sufficient to warrant imposing the ‘‘resign to run’’ rule. However, the judge should be careful to avoid presiding over matters affecting the entity to which the judge is seeking public office. Rule 4.3