Barry L. Vaughan

Barry L. Vaughan

Nonpartisan

Acting Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Tenure

2021 - Present

Term ends

2026

Years in position

4

Prior offices

Illinois 2nd Circuit Court

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Report an officeholder change

Compensation

Base salary

$268,190

Elections and appointments

Last election

June 28, 2022

Appointed

December 11, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, 1984

Law

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, 1988

Personal

Birthplace

McLeansboro, Ill.

Religion

Baptist

Profession

Judge

Contact

Official website

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Barry L. Vaughan is an acting judge of the Illinois 5th District Appellate Court. He assumed office on January 4, 2021.

Vaughan (Republican Party) ran for re-election for judge of the Illinois 5th District Appellate Court. He lost in the Republican primary on June 28, 2022.

Vaughan completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Vaughan was appointed to the court on December 11, 2020, by the Illinois Supreme Court to fill the seat previously occupied by Mark M. Boie (R).

Biography

Barry L. Vaughan was born in McLeansboro, Illinois. He earned a bachelor's degree in 1984 and a law degree in 1988 from the Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. His career experience includes working as a judge. He has served as a peer mentor judge to new judges, as a child custody mediator, and as judicial faculty teaching classes at the judicial education conference. Vaughan has been affiliated with the Lions Club, Rotary, A.F. & A.M., IHSA, Illinois Coaches Association, and Illinois Farm Bureau.

Elections

2022

See also: Illinois intermediate appellate court elections, 2022

General election

General election for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Mike McHaney defeated Brian Roberts in the general election for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike McHaney (R)	64.5	413,778
		Brian Roberts (D)	35.5	227,429

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 641,207
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Brian Roberts advanced from the Democratic primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brian Roberts	100.0	60,960

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 60,960
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court

Mike McHaney defeated incumbent Barry L. Vaughan in the Republican primary for Illinois 5th District Appellate Court on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike McHaney	56.6	94,115
		Barry L. Vaughan	43.4	72,129

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 166,244
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Thomas DeVore (R)

Endorsements

To view Vaughan's endorsements in the 2022 election, please click here.

2014

See also: Illinois judicial elections, 2014

Vaughan was retained to the Second Circuit Court with 69.7 percent of the vote on November 4, 2014.  

Evaluations

The Illinois State Bar Association and participating attorneys rated Barry L. Vaughan as Recommended for retention in a 2014 poll.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Barry L. Vaughan completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Vaughan's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I grew up on a small family farm. I helped pay my way through law school by working in the oilfields and as a union laborer. I was elected Wayne County State's Attorney while finishing law school at the age of 26 and served two terms. I was a small town sole practitioner with a general law practice for six years. During that time I represented almost every local school district and village in the area. I was also appointed Fairfield City Attorney for four years. In 2000 I returned to my home town of McLeansboro in Hamilton County and was elected Resident Circuit Judge in 2002. I was retained in 2008, 2014, and in 2020. In 2020 I received a bar poll rating in the ISBA bar poll of 98.7 and the highest retention vote anyone had ever received in the Second Judicial Circuit. In December 2020 I was assigned by Justice David Overstreet and the Illinois Supreme Court to serve on the 5th District Appellate Court and I am now seeking an elected seat on that court. In the most recent ISBA ratings, I was rated as Recommended by the ISBA evaluation committee and received a rating from the attorneys of 89.66. I was the only candidate to be recommended as my opponents received ratings of 44 and 51 from the attorneys and Not Recommended from the committee. I have served on three Illinois Supreme Court Committees, Chairman of one, and I have served as faculty at the Illinois Supreme Court Education Conference since 2014.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• I'm the only candidate for the Appellate Court, 5th District to receive a rating of Recommended by the Illinois State Bar Association.
• I'm the only candidate for the Appellate Court, 5th District to have served as an elected prosecutor and the only Justice currently sitting on the 5th District who was an elected prosecutor.
• I'm the only candidate for the Appellate Court, 5th District to have actually served on the Appellate Court with the unanimous approval of the Illinois Supreme Court.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

My hobbies, when not working as an appellate court justice are officiating junior high and high school girls' and boys' basketball. I also serve as an "expert" USGA golf rules official. I am passionate about the study and application of the laws and rules. The job of a judge and as a referee are surprisingly similar. You can not make up your own rules. You can not simply disregard rules or laws you do not like. You simply have to keep a cool head and apply the facts of each situation to the rules/laws as is appropriate.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

My parents were both hard workers, raised on farms, but they each earned their masters degrees and became educators. They tried to do what was right and always worked hard to provide for our family.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

I think first and foremost is a desire to hear both sides and be fair to both sides. We all come to questions where our per-conceived notions or background may influence our decision making. It is important to not let those notions block out contrary information that may assist us. At the same time, our background also helps us to understand the arguments being made. In the law, there should be a degree of certainty and predictability so people know how to conduce their business and lives. A decision shouldn't turn on the particular biases of who the judge happens to be that day. That is why the judge should strive to interpret the law and its original intent, rather than the judge trying to make law or apply the judge's own thoughts about what the law should be. The legislature makes the law. The judge simply tries to determine what the intent of the law is and if it was followed.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

From my background growing up on a farm, working in the oilfield, running a jackhammer through the labor union, I have a strong work ethic that I have tried to continue on the bench. With my involvement with the local fair board, deacon in my church, volunteer high school golf coach and bus driver, USGA golf rules official, and IHSA basketball referee, I have demonstrated a commitment to my community. With my involvement with continuing education classes and committees as a judge I have demonstrated a commitment to getting better each year as a judge.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

Probably the first event I really remember is watching the moon landing in 1969 when I was seven years old.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I grew up on a farm so my first job was working on our family farm. When we would finish with our farming, I would hire out to neighbors to drive a tractor. My first paying job outside farming was working through Labor Union Local 1197 as a laborer running a jackhammer. My first job in the field of law was as an intern in the Jefferson County, Illinois State's Attorney's Office.

How would you describe your legal philosophy?

When I referee a basketball game, when we have the captains' meeting to start the game I often tell the players and coaches to "stay in their lane". Coach, you coach, players, you play, and we will referee and call the game. A judge is to interpret the law. We are not to make the law, that is for the legislature. We are not to administer the law, that is for the executive branch. We are to try to interpret the law as we understand the intent of the law to be.

Have you ever been rated by a Bar Association? If so, what was the rating?

I have been rated by the Illinois State Bar Association in 2002, 2008, 2014, 2020, and 2022. I was rated at a 90% approval in 2002 when I first ran for judge, 90% in 2008, 93% in 2014, 98.7% in 2020, and in this race I was the only one to be recommended with a 90% approval rating.

Do you believe that Bar Association ratings are an accurate reflection of a judge’s ability?

I do believe that the most accurate measure of how a judge is doing is the bar poll sent out to the attorneys provided enough attorneys respond to get a good sampling. In my most recent rating, 207 attorneys in the 5th District responded and I received almost 90% approval. I'm sure there are a few attorneys who want to reward one candidate and take a shot at another candidate, but when you have a good number respond I think the result is fairly accurate. I believe most of the attorneys responding take their responsibility seriously to give the public an accurate evaluation of the judicial candidates and give a lot of thought to their responses.

Tell us your favorite joke.

What do you call a lawyer with an IQ below 90?

Your Honor

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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