Lawyers for Steven Bailey, the Republican attorney general candidate facing ethics charges tied to his tenure as a judge, told a panel of special masters on Tuesday that the disciplinary proceedings against him are “politically motivated” and inspired by a bitter formal colleague.

James Murphy of Murphy Pearson Bradley & Feeney told the three-judge panel investigating misconduct charges against Bailey that the Commission on Judicial Performance has been “over-zealous” in its pursuit of his client, the former El Dorado County Superior Court judge who retired in 2017. Murphy said the charges stem from a dispute between Bailey and the court’s presiding judge of 18 years, Suzanne Kingsbury, and his decision to run for attorney general.