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Attorney General Eric Holder speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2014, to announce the Justice Departments civil rights division will launch a broad civil rights investigation in the Ferguson, Mo., Police Department. ... more >

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. met Tuesday with his counterparts from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras during his trip to Mexico City, the Justice Department said.

The group discussed ways to address situations in Central America that are contributing to large numbers of unaccompanied children trying to cross the border into the U.S.

Specifically, the group considered strategies about how to best confront the smugglers of these unaccompanied children, the violent gangs who victimize them in their home countries and the cartels who tax or exploit them in their passage, said Justice Department spokesman Brian Fallon.

The officials agreed to form a working group that would meet regularly to address the issue. The first conference is planned for the coming weeks, Mr. Fallon said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection estimates that 66,000 unaccompanied minors crossed the border this year, an 88 percent increase over last year.

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Eric Holder meets with Central Americans about unaccompanied children at border

Senator Arnie Roblan Democrat - District 5 - Coos Bay
Senator Roblan #39;s commitment to his community long precedes his election to public office. He is a founding boardmember of Friends of New and Sustainable Indu...

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Senator Arnie Roblan Democrat - District 5 - Coos Bay - Video

Wyoming Democrat Richard Grayson: Alan Simpson Is a Stupid Person #39;s Idea of a Smart Person
Wyoming Democrat Richard Grayson: Alan Simpson Is a Stupid Person #39;s Idea of a Smart Person.

By: Richard Grayson

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Wyoming Democrat Richard Grayson: Alan Simpson Is a Stupid Person's Idea of a Smart Person - Video

A week after he bowed out of Kansas' Senate race, Democrat Chad Taylor on Tuesday filed a petition with the state's Supreme Court to have his name removed from the November ballot.

Taylor filed the petition naming Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach as the defendant. Kobach, a Republican, is the state's top elections official and has refused to take Taylors name off the ballot even though he ended his campaign.

With little funding and statewide popularity, Taylor, a district attorney from the Topeka area, exited the race to elevateindependentGreg Orman, a self-funded management consultant who can wage a much more formidablechallenge againstincumbent Republican Sen. Pat Roberts.

Democrats have assailed Kobach as playing partisan politics by keeping Taylor's name on the ballot.

Pedro Irigonegaray, who is representing Taylor, said Tuesday he's also asked the state Supreme Court to issue a temporary restrainingorder on Kobach that denies him from printing and mailing ballots. Ballots are set to be sent to overseas voters early next month.

"There's no hearing set, but timing is of the essence," Irigonegaray said.

Roberts is widely viewed as vulnerable ascriticism has mounted that the third-term incumbent has become out of touch with voters, particularly after the New York Times reported he no longer owns a home in the state, but instead rents a room from a friend.

As Republicans look to net six seats and possibly gain control of the Senate after the November midterm election, they're forced to play defense to keep Roberts in office. Moreover, Republican Gov. Sam Brownback, who has been widely criticizedfortax cuts that have badly strained state finances, also faces a tough reelection in a down ticket race that could have implications on the Senate contest.

JoanWagnon, Kansas' Democratic Party chairwoman, said in a statement Tuesday the party will watch closely as this legal challenge proceeds through the courts.

Follow @kurtisaleeand emailkurtis.lee@latimes.com.

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Kansas Democrat Chad Taylor asks court to remove his name from ballot

Louisianas U.S. Senator-elect Mary Landrieu gets a big hug from her father MoonLandrieu and mother Verna at a news conference in New Orleans Wednesday Nov. 6, 1996. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

Several red-state Democratic Senate candidates share more than the pressure of helping Harry Reid keep his job title.

They are all heirs to the family business: politics.

Its difficult to be a Democrat in a conservative state, but it seems to help a whole lot if your name is also a brand. Sens. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, and Mark Begich of Alaska are in difficult reelection fights, but are buoyed, in part, because of the legacy of their family names.

Then theres Michelle Nunn in Georgia, a newcomer to public office, but who likewise benefits from a well-regarded surname.

And even one of the few potential Democratic House pickups is the offspring of a famous political father Gwen Graham, running in a Florida swing district.

Its a coincidence that so many Democrats with family ties are in neck-and-neck fights this fall. But what is not a coincidence is the advantage it gives them in states that might otherwise be unwinnable for a Democrat today.

Mark Mellman, CEO of Mellman Group, the Democratic polling firm with big-league clients such asHarry Reid and Landrieu, said having a well-known last name helps give those politicians staying power.

Its true that in these red states, Democrats need every advantage they can get, he told the Loop. Having that strong brand name that is appealing to people, that has a real track record, its a real advantage.

John Anzalone, who runs another high-profile Democratic polling outfit and has poll-tested the impact of the candidates political dads in some of the aforementioned races, said it helps cut away at the Republican attack that Democrats are all rubber stamps for President Obama.

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In the Loop: What do these red-state Democratic Senate candidates have in common? Their dads.