Disqualified candidates file joint lawsuit to reenter Milwaukee County Executive race

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Another new legal twist took place Wednesday in the race for Milwaukee County Executive.

The two candidates who just got kicked off the ballot have gone back to court.

"We should have a hearing in the next 48 hours," said candidate Bryan Kennedy. "It has to be resolved quickly, because Milwaukee County has to get ballots printed."

Kennedy says that he and Jim Sullivan have filed a joint lawsuit to get their names back on the primary ballot. They were removed because some of the people who collected signatures for their candidacy violated state law by working for more than one candidate.

Kennedy says he and Sullivan worked through a vendor and had no way of knowing who was collecting the signatures. He also says rival candidate Theo Lipscomb filed the complaint just minutes before a deadline, allowing them no time to address the problem. Kennedy calls that "Chicago style politics."

"Finding some minor technicality to get your opponent off the ballot because you know you can't beat them on issues. The only way you can beat them is to get them removed from the process entirely. And I think it's a pretty clear indication of what we can expect if Chairman Lipscomb becomes the County Executive. This is how he does business."

Kennedy calls the complaint by Lipscomb a "gut punch," since it came from someone he thought was a friend.