Dems slam latest party switcher

Alabama Democrats are criticizing a Limestone County official who announced Monday he was switching parties.

Limestone County Circuit Court Judge Robert Baker announced Monday, less than four months after being elected as a Democrat without opposition, that he was switching parties to become a Republican.

"Judge Baker ran unopposed in last year's election and more than 14,000 Limestone County residents still turned out to cast a ballot in his favor on the Democratic party line," said Alabama Democratic Party Chairman Mark Kennedy. "Changing parties four months after your re-election reeks of political opportunism, especially when there are many qualified Democratic candidates who may have deferred to the incumbent when he qualified to run for another term in office last year."

Democrats in Limestone County "have strongly backed Judge Baker at the ballot box, and it is unfortunate that he would choose to throw away years of support from these dedicated Democratic voters just to seek short-term political gain," according to the Alabama Democratic Party.

Democrats are undeterred by Baker's "misguided" switch and vowed "full backing" of a future Democratic opponent for the judge. On Saturday, according to the Alabama Democratic Party, there was a standing room only meeting of Limestone County Democrats in Tanner.

Baker is the latest in a series of county officials who have left the Alabama Democratic Party.

-- posted by Sebastian Kitchen