JP Election Brief: August primaries settling judicial races

August 16, 2012

by: the State Court Staff

Every Thursday, Judgepedia's State Court Staff examines events in the world of judicial elections across the nation. Make sure to use Judgepedia's Election Central the rest of the week as a hub for all your judicial election needs.

Important dates

Filing deadline

• August 17: Filing deadline in Iowa
• August 17: Filing deadline in Louisiana

Primary election

• August 21: Primary runoff in Georgia

In the News

The weird and wacky Alabama Chief Justice race

Tomorrow the Alabama Democratic Party will consider whether to disqualify Harry Lyon, their candidate for Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. Lyon was the only Democrat to file for the race, and thus won nomination unopposed in the March primary election. Since then, Democrats have questioned his behavior and public statements, which some believe violate the canon of judicial ethics. Critics point to comments made about gays and lesbians, taunting of his opponent, Roy Moore, and negative references to the Alabama Supreme Court as a whole.

For his part, Lyon believes that the Democrats have planned to remove him from the ballot. He said, "They are looking for anything they can to get rid of me now that Moore has won the primary." If Lyon is disqualified this week, the Democratic Party will be allowed to name a replacement candidate for the general election in November.

In addition to Lyon's hearing, he also received bad news recently regarding endorsements. The predictably left-leaning AFL-CIO labor union endorsed his opponent, Roy Moore. At the time of the endorsement, the union said that Moore had historically run his courts fairly without corporate influence. At least, that was August 6th. Yesterday, the union rescinded the endorsement, saying that if the Democrats remove Lyon from the ballot, they are likely to support the party's replacement candidate.

Florida primary settles some Circuit Court races

The primary election for Florida circuit judges and judicial hopefuls concluded Tuesday evening, Aug. 14. According to state rules, if one candidate receives a majority of the vote in the primary, they are automatically elected without a general election. A number of new judges were elected this way, some of them even toppling incumbents.

The following non-incumbent candidates were elected to judgeships in the primary:

Name	% of vote
Andrew J. Decker, III	81.0%
Wes Douglas	56.7%
Suzanne Bass	59.2% *
Mark Borello	66.2%
Kim Campbell	58.9%
Bill Burgess	62.5%
Catherine L. Combee	52.7%
Teresa Mary Pooler	56.4%
Maria Santovenia	51.5%
Maria Elena Verde	51.6%
Michael Ian Rothschild	15.4%
Lisa Spader Porter	71.1% *
Joe Foster	60.3%

* defeated incumbent judge

These judges will take office on January 8, 2013. For more election results, see: Florida judicial elections, 2012 - Circuit Court.

Primary results in Minnesota

The Minnesota primary election was Tuesday, August 14th, and the results are in! Only three judicial seats were considered in the primary: the Chief Justice and Place 4 seats on the Supreme Court, and a seat on the Fourth Judicial District Court (Court 22). In Minnesota the two candidates that receive the highest votes in the primary proceed on to the general election. The election of judges in Minnesota is nonpartisan.

In both Supreme Court races, three candidates were vying for two seats. In both races, the incumbent was successful in their bid for re-election. In the race for the Chief Justice position incumbent Lorie Gildea and challenger Dan Griffith will compete against one another in the general election. In the race for Place 4 judge incumbent David Stras and Tim Tingelstad received enough votes to continue on to the general election. In the Supreme Court races challengers Alan Nelson and Jill Clark were defeated, both receiving approximately 21% of the vote in their races.

In the only District Court race to require a primary, Fourth Judicial District, Court 22, Elizabeth V. Cutter and Steven E. Antolak are continuing on to the general election. No incumbent was running for this seat, and neither continuing candidate is currently serving as a judge. Two other challengers, Diane M. Krenz and Deborah Russell, were defeated in the primary. Antolak received 22.27% of the primary vote, while Cutter received 42.32%.

Missouri primary results

Last week wrapped up Missouri's judicial primary showing us the candidates who will go on to compete in the general election.

The following is a selection of contested races that will occur on November 6th:

17th Circuit Court

• Belton attorney Chase Higinbotham will compete with Associate Circuit Court Judge William B. Collins for judgeship on the 17th Circuit.

23rd Circuit Court

• Incumbent Judge Robert G. Wilkins will be challenged by Hillsboro attorney Stan Schnaare.

25th Circuit Court

• Attorney Bill Hickle will take on Associate Circuit Court Judge Colin Long as both compete for the 25th Circuit judgeship.

30th Circuit Court

• Associate Circuit Court Judge Michael Hendrickson will take on Marshfield attorney Emily A. Prestidge in the race for the 30th Circuit.

35th Circuit Court

• Robert Mayer will compete against Associate Circuit Court Judge Stephen R. Mitchell for a position on the 35th Circuit.

41st Circuit Court

• Associate Judge Philip Prewitt was unopposed in the Republican primary, but will have some competition in November when he faces incumbent Judge Frederick Tucker.

45th Circuit Court

• Attorney Christina C. Kunza Mennemeyer defeated her competition in the primary last week, but now she goes on to face Associate Judge T. Bennett Burkemper, Jr. in the race for the 45 Circuit.

Arizona candidates gearing up for late month primary

As Arizona's August 28 primary draws nearer, superior court judicial races are shaping up. Two positions on the Navajo County Superior Court are the subject of contested races.

Division II

Incumbent Judge Robert James Higgins, a Democrat, was appointed to the Division II seat by Governor Jan Brewer in February of 2012. He earned his B.A. and his J.D. from Santa Clara University, and also holds a master's degree in English from Arizona State University. Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Higgins practiced law for 18 years in Navajo County, working for three years as a Deputy County Attorney and for 15 years in private practice. As a judge, he has implemented changes in the county's Drug Court, and has also introduced a program called Early Resolution Court, which aims to process criminal cases quickly in an effort to unclog the justice system and keep it running smoothly.

F. Morgan Brown, a Democratic challenger and lifelong Arizona resident, earned his B.A. and his J.D. from Arizona State University, and has practiced at the same firm since he graduated from law school in 1996. Brown hopes to increase the use of technology in the courtroom by allowing for electronic filing of documents, and is interested in introducing mediation or arbitration to help civil cases move more quickly through the system.

D. Shawn Taylor, a Republican challenger, earned his B.A. from Arizona State University and his J.D. from the University of Wyoming College of Law. Taylor has worked as a clerk for the U.S. Attorney's Office, as Deputy Navajo County Attorney, as Prosecutor for Springerville, Arizona, and in private practice. He has experience in both criminal law and family law.

Division III

Incumbent Judge John Lamb, a Democrat, has been the Division III judge for the past seven years, and previously served 10 years as justice of the peace. He earned his undergraduate degree at Stanford University and his J.D. from Northwestern University.

Eduardo Coronado is a Democrat who earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Arizona and his J.D. from the University of Akron School of Law. Coronado has experience in both civil and criminal law, and has served as the Town Attorney for Springerville, Arizona. The son of migrant farm workers who worked as a migrant farm worker himself, Coronado entered the legal profession because of his desire to protect the rights of the less fortunate.

See also

• Judgepedia's Election Central