FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Supreme Court disqualified state Rep. Nima Kulkarni, D-Louisville, as a candidate in the Democratic primary in House District 40 on Friday. 

What You Need To Know

  • Nima Kularni has been disqualified as a candidate for House District 40

  • The Kentucky Supreme Court issued a partial ruling Friday, saying a full ruling is still to come

  • Kulkarni's nomination was questioned because of the validity of signatures on her nomination papers

  • She won the May 7 primary but what happens now is unclear until there is a full rulling

The partial ruling comes just weeks after she won the May 7 primary. A majority of justices issued the decision Friday, writing a full opinion come later.

The justices decision upholds a previous decision by the Kentucky Court of Appeals which ruled Kulkarni couldn’t run in the primary because one of her two required witnesses, Sharon LaRue, signed Kulkarni’s nomination form as a registered Republican before the Jan. 5 deadline to file nomination papers had closed.

Former state legislator Dennis Horlander filed a petition in March to keep Kulkarni off the ballot because of the validity of her nomination papers. Horlander argued because Kulkarni’s nomination form was not signed by two registered voters of her party and that she should be disqualified. Kulkarni defeated Horlander in the 2018 primary election.

Chief Justice Laurance B. VanMeter had both parties file amicus briefs, and both sides presented their cases before the justices Thursday in Frankfort.

Kulkarni, an attorney, is seeking her fourth term and faced William Zeitz in May. She won the primary receiving 78% of the vote. What comes next is unclear since the justices haven’t issued their full ruling on the case. 

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