In an exceptionally hard-fought judicial race, two south-metro lawyers are challenging First District Judge Timothy Blakely, whom the Minnesota Supreme Court suspended for six months over misconduct, in next week's primary election.

Blakely, who has returned to his chambers in Red Wing and hears many cases in Dakota, Scott and Goodhue counties, is running for his third term in the expansive First District, which also includes four other counties. His six-year term ends in January.

Such challenges are unusual in nonpartisan judicial elections because, typically, a sitting judge has an overwhelming advantage.

But in this race, Blakely's opponents are planting lawn signs, marching in parades, meeting with groups and using their websites to remind voters of Blakely's ethical lapses.

In Minnesota, at least three-quarters of judicial elections are uncontested, said David Schultz, author and nationally recognized law professor at Hamline University.

"To have one challenger is unusual; to have two challengers is incredibly unusual. That clearly makes the race unique," he said.

During the campaign, Blakely continues to stay on the bench, hearing cases. Opponent Lawrence (Larry) Clark continues to prosecute serious crimes for the Dakota County attorney's office. But Stephen Baker, a former prosecutor who specializes in family law, has put most of his practice on hold to campaign full time. Baker has peppered the south metro with hundreds of lawn signs -- so many that observers say it's like nothing they've seen in a judicial race.

In a district so big, he said, the lawn signs are the most effective way to campaign.

Clark lives in Red Wing, Baker is from Lakeville and Blakely is from Eagan. The top two vote-getters in the Aug. 10 primary will face off in the November election.

Family law attorney Shelly Rohr withdrew after filing for the seat, saying commitments to her clients precluded an effective campaign.

Ethical firestorm

The Minnesota Board on Judicial Standards recommended last year that Blakely be fired for steering 17 unwitting people in his courtroom to his own divorce attorney while getting $64,000 knocked off his private bill. The state Supreme Court later reduced that to a six-month unpaid suspension.

Blakely didn't return phone calls for comment last week.

Clark, a lawyer for 30 years, says on his website that "I never envisioned myself running against a sitting judge, but I now feel compelled to run for this office, in an effort to restore integrity and respect to the position," Clark wrote.

On Baker's website, viewers can hear a political ad, introduced by a woman's voice, which says in part:

"Judge Timothy Blakely is a problem. He was recently suspended from our bench for misconduct that the Minnesota Supreme Court described as 'an extremely disturbing course of events.' And now he has the nerve to run for reelection?"

The ad goes on to describe Baker's credentials and ends with Baker himself saying:

"I'm Stephen Baker, and I paid for this ad because I believe we need the spirit of community service, volunteerism and honesty on our bench, not misconduct."

Candidates' backgrounds

Blakely, 47, has been a First Judicial District judge since 1998. In addition to Dakota and Scott counties, the district includes Carver, Goodhue, Sibley, McLeod and LeSeuer. He was elected to the bench in 1998 and reelected in 2004. He's also been a trial attorney and adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota and William Mitchell law schools. For 21 years, he served in the active and reserve Navy, retiring from the reserve in 2005 as a lieutenant commander and intelligence officer.

Clark, 58, is a senior attorney with the Dakota County attorney's office, where over the past 21 years he's prosecuted many serious cases, including murders. He was named 1997 prosecutor of the year by the International Association of Arson Investigators for his prosecution of Kelly Ritt, a Hastings mother sentenced to life in prison for starting a fire that killed her 2-year-old disabled daughter.

Baker, 53, served 15 years as a prosecutor in Eagan, Burnsville, Mendota Heights and Red Wing, and before that, in Florida. He's been honored for his pro bono work. Twice, Baker has been named a "Super-Lawyer," once as a defense attorney and once as prosecutor. He has been an arbitrator on Lemon Law, construction and consumer matters for the Minnesota Better Business Bureau since 1997.

Joy Powell • 952-882-9017