Kim Davis May Become a Minister After Election Loss

After losing her position as Rowan County clerk, Kim Davis, who in 2015 famously went to jail rather than do her job and issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, will likely pursue a life in Christian ministry, according to her attorney.

Davis, a Republican, lost her reelection bid to Democrat Elwood Caudill Jr. by 700 votes last Tuesday.

As county clerk, Davis notoriously shut down all marriage license operations in Rowan County after the U.S. Supreme Court's marriage equality ruling so she wouldn't have to serve same-sex couples, an act that she said went against her religious beliefs. Four couples, a mix of same-sex and opposite-sex, sued over her action. She spent five days in jail for contempt of court, as she defied a federal judge's order to resume issuing marriage licenses without discrimination. She was released because her deputies agreed to handle licenses for same-sex couples, and eventually the state removed clerks' names from marriage licenses throughout Kentucky, an accommodation Davis sought.

Davis, an Apostolic Christian, will now probably take up some kind of faith-based work, said Mat Staver, founder and chairman of far-right legal group Liberty Counsel and Davis's attorney in the court proceedings.

"Frankly, I think what she's going to do and where she's been wanting to go, is into some form of ministry," Staver said Thursday on a Christian talk-radio show, Crosstalk. "That's where the Lord is leading her this time." Staver also questioned Caudill's ability to run the clerk's office.

A summary of Staver's comments on Davis's race is available at Newsweek, or the full segment can be downloaded at Crosstalk. During the segment, he said the many LGBTQ candidates who won elections Tuesday prevailed because of identity politics rather than qualifications and called Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum a socialist.