ATLANTA — Former U.S. Rep. John Barrow filed a federal lawsuit Monday to block the state’s judicial watchdog agency from seeking misconduct charges against him for centering his campaign for a seat on the Georgia Supreme Court on a pledge to support abortion rights.

The lawsuit came days after the Judicial Qualifications Commission informed the former Democratic lawmaker he was facing a complaint for pledging to “protect” abortion rights against a 2019 Republican-backed state law that restricts the procedure.

In the five-page letter, the agency said Barrow had the right to state his views on partisan or disputed issues. But it said he violated the Judicial Code of Conduct by making “misleading” pledges to protect selected rights and promises about “highly sensitive cases” likely to come before the state’s top court. It urged him to immediately change his campaign message.

Barrow’s lawsuit challenging the code said he is “suffering irreparable harm” from the complaint ahead of the May 21 vote. It asked a federal judge to block the judicial agency from sanctioning him on grounds that it violates his free speech rights.

It’s the latest development in one of the most unusual — and closely watched — Georgia judicial races in a generation as Barrow challenges Justice Andrew Pinson, who was Gov. Brian Kemp’s surprise 2022 pick to fill a vacant seat.

Over nearly two centuries, almost all the sitting Georgia Supreme Court justices who have sought another term have won their elections. Barrow, a former five-term Democratic lawmaker, might have the best chance in decades to upend that tradition.

He is bucking convention by treating the nonpartisan contest like a political campaign, telling audiences he supports abortion rights because, as he said at a North Fulton County Democrats forum, “politicians shouldn’t be making your personal health care decisions.”

“I’m running because I believe that women have the same rights today under our state constitution that they used to have under Roe v. Wade,” he said last week at the crowded forum.

Pinson, meanwhile, has run a more traditional campaign by avoiding speaking directly about issues that could come before the court while talking broadly about his philosophy.

“I’m a judge, not a politician,” said Pinson, who was appointed to the bench by Kemp after serving as the state solicitor general. “Folks understand that what makes a good judge doesn’t really have to do with partisanship or politics.”

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