JP Election Brief: Close races, scandal and removal from the ballot
The JP Election Brief | |
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| Pulling back the curtain on the drama of judicial elections | |
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| In this issue... | |
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March 13, 2014
| There's been drama across the nation as judicial candidates prepare for the primaries. In this Election Brief, we'll highlight some competitions in Georgia, Illinois and Missouri. Additionally, we've got stories about a candidate who was kicked off the ballot in Ohio, a nail-biter of a Texas primary with a one-vote difference and a judge who is running for re-election despite facing possible suspension. Finally, if you live in Illinois, don't forget to vote in the primary on March 18! | ||
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Illinois primary preview
Next Tuesday, March 18, the Illinois primary will be taking center stage. Participating in this year's election are a number of interesting candidates.
Running for the McDonald vacancy on the Cook County Circuit Court, Linda L. Mastandrea is not just an attorney but also a gold medal paralympian in wheelchair track.[1] Mastandrea, who won the Chicago Tribune endorsement, has been praised for her advocacy work on behalf of disabled clients. The Council of Lawyers expressed concern that Mastandrea lacks experience in complex litigation. She will face Cynthia Y. Cobbs in the primary.
The race for the Jordan vacancy in the Cook County 12th Subcircuit is proving to be a colorful one. The Tribune endorses James Edward Hanlon, Jr., citing his well-rounded skills with commercial litigation.[2] One of Hanlon's opponents in the race, James L. Kaplan, was discovered by a WGN/Medill Watchdog report to be skirting residency requirements by renting an apartment in the subcircuit while his family's home is in Lake County.[2] He is seeking a return to the bench, as he was appointed to the 8th Subcircuit in late 2010 but was unable to secure election to a full term in 2012. This year, he is endorsed by Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky.[3] Also in the race is Ralph Eugene Meczyk, who was found to be not qualified by the Council of Lawyers due to a 1980 felony conviction for underreporting income. However, Meczyk was pardoned for the crime by President Bill Clinton and boasts 37 years of civil, criminal and appellate experience.[2][4]
There are two openly gay candidates running for positions in Cook County. Judy Rice and James Patrick Crawley are running for the Cook County 7th Subcircuit's Taylor vacancy and the Veal vacancy of the Cook County Circuit Court, respectively. According to the Windy City Media Group, Rice is a Chicago native with a history in city government and Crawley is a personal injury attorney with over 25 years legal experience.[5]
If you want to learn more about how the Illinois primary elections work, check out Judgepedia's page on the Illinois judicial elections. You can find out more about the 2014 candidates at our Illinois judicial elections, 2014 page. And remember, if you live in Illinois, get out and vote next Tuesday!
Shelby County judge one vote behind opponent after unofficial primary results
In the closest primary election statewide, Shelby County Judge Rick Campbell may have lost to newcomer Allison Harbison by a single ballot.[6]
Residents of Center, Texas, a small town near the Louisiana border, cast 1628 votes in favor of Campbell and 1629 for his opponent in the March 4 Republican primary. The results are yet unofficial, since the incumbent judge plans to seek a recount and there are five provisional ballots in need of review as well.[6] Commented Campbell,
| “ | Who knows who those five voters are? … It’s a true horse race and the nose of the horse hasn’t crossed the finished line yet.[6][7] | ” |
The narrow contest is a testament to local concerns over a healthcare facility, the Shelby County Medical Center, which closed in the summer of 2013. Weeks after it shut down, toddler Edith Gonzalez was rushed to the center for treatment. By the time her parents realized that the facility was closed, it was too late to save the child. Harbison garnered support from women and local medical professionals who were enraged by the story and believed Campbell was not adequately addressing the situation.[6]
When confronted on the issue, community leaders pointed to a lack of available funds. "I can't just open a checkbook, I can't wave a magic wand," said Campbell in an interview with Dallas News. The judge has also said that he is philosophically opposed to government interference in private health care, believing that residents ought to create their own plans for seeking treatment.[6]
But residents like Kathy Hagler, who compiled 1500 signatures to reopen the treatment center, disagree. Hagler even admitted to cornering people in the supermarket aisles to raise support for Harbison's campaign.[6] She said that Harbison is committed to the hospital issue, explaining, "[Harbison] herself has a mother in a nursing home. I’m praying for her official victory."[6]
Harbison has been a county clerk for the last 14 years. Judge Campbell, whose family has been active in Shelby County politics for generations, is a successful businessman and cattleman.[6]
Primary candidates filed in New Mexico
| Every Thursday, Judgepedia's State Courts Staff highlights interesting 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. |
Major party candidates have filed to run in the New Mexico primary election on June 3.
Many district judges who were appointed in the past couple of years will be on the ballot in the hopes of serving a full term. For example, in the First District Court, three such judges are seeking election.
Francis Joseph Mathew, who holds the Division 1 position, was appointed by Governor Susana Martinez in January 2013. He took the seat of Judge Barbara J. Vigil after she was appointed to the New Mexico Supreme Court in 2012. Mathew is running as a Democrat. He'll be unopposed in the primary, and no Republicans filed to face him in the general election either. He is a University of Notre Dame alumni, and previously ran his own private practice.
Sylvia LaMar has been the Division 4 judge since November 2012, when she was appointed to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Michael Eugene Vigil. She is also running unopposed in the primary, with no Republican opponent for the general.
Gov. Susana Martinez only recently appointed Matthew Justin Wilson to the Division 6 position in October 2013. He is a former domestic relations hearing officer for the First Judicial District, and will be running for a full term as a district judge. He has two other Democratic opponents in the June 3rd primary--David Thomson and Yvonne Kathleen Quintana. Thomson is previous judge for the First District Court. He was appointed in March 2010, but was defeated by T. Glenn Ellington in the primary later that year. Quintana ran for the Division 5 position of the same court in 2010. She lost to incumbent Sheri Raphaelson in the Democratic primary.[8] With no Republican competition, the Democratic primary will decide the winner.
Filing deadline passes, competitive races start to emerge
Georgia's Brunswick Judicial Circuit emerged early as a competitive judicial race for 2014, where two candidates announced intent to run. Both candidates are experienced in election politics, and both have competed with each other indirectly for the very same position. Experienced challenger Mary Helen Moses, who ran and lost against the former incumbent judge in 2010, is facing incumbent Roger B. Lane, who was appointed to fill the position by Governor Nathan Deal when the elected judge resigned. Lane is a former Georgia state representative, and was appointed mid-term to replace Amanda F. Williams, who was facing discipline from the Judicial Qualifications Commission.[9]
Though the Georgia Superior Court elections are nonpartisan, Roger B. Lane was a Republican representative, and is well-known in his county Republican circles. Moses, likewise, has been recorded as voting in Republican primaries and was a member of the Golden Isles Republican Women.[10] Adding to the competitive nature of the election, Moses was among the nominated attorneys to fill the vacancy left by Judge Williams, a pool which numbered around 20 attorneys. Moses is a law professor at Mercer University and practicing attorney in the Brunswick area. She managed to earn 36 percent of the vote in her previous challenge.[11][12]
Georgia judicial candidates will compete in a special general election on May 20.
Lake County attorney removed from primary ballot
Ohio:
After a successful challenge from a local resident contesting her address, attorney Patricia Lynn Winfield has been removed from the Ohio Eleventh District Court of Appeals primary ballot.[13]
Winfield, a Democrat, was seeking to run for a seat on the appellate court that is based in Warren, Ohio and serves Lake, Geauga, Ashtabula, Portage, and Trumbull counties. Though Winfield had listed an address in Willoughby as her place of residence, Concord resident Paul R. Malchesky argued that she actually resided in Euclid, which is outside the five-county jurisdiction of the Eleventh District Court of Appeals. At the hearing, Winfield testified that she owned the property in Willoughby but did not live there, though she planned to do so when her current tenant moved out.[13]
The four-member Lake County Board of Elections voted unanimously to remove Winfield from the primary ballot. “We reviewed the evidence and we all agreed the residency requirement at that address was not met,” said board chairman David Vitaz.[13] Under the Ohio Revised Code 2701.04 and the Ohio Constitution Article XV, §4, a judicial candidate must reside in the district to which she or he is seeking election.[14] Winfield expressed disappointment after the ruling. “I moved to Lake County and followed the rules and I believe that their decision is wrong,” she said.[13] She added that though she would have fared better had she run for the 8th District Court of Appeals from her Euclid address, she had been unable to register as a candidate there due to her supposed move to Willoughby.[13]
The six-year term begins in February of 2015. Judge Timothy Cannon, the incumbent, will now run unopposed in the party primary on May 6 and will face Rock Creek Republican Ron Tamburrino — who is also running unopposed in his party’s primary — in the general election on November 4.[15]
Wade McCree to run for re-election despite sex scandal
Michigan: Judge Wade McCree surprised many when, on February 21, 2014, he filed to run for re-election to his seat on Michigan's 3rd Circuit Court.[16] For most judges, this would not be shocking, but McCree was infamously involved in a 2012 sex scandal for which his punishment has yet to be determined.
In the first incident, McCree sent a topless picture of himself to a married, female court employee. For this he was censured by the state supreme court in late 2012. However, the biggest scandal surfaced later, when the judge admitted to having an affair with Geniene LaShay Mott. Mott had appeared before the judge for her child support case. McCree did not recuse himself from her case, though they discussed the case together outside of the court and have since admitted to having sexual relations in the judge's chambers.
The Michigan Judicial Tenure Commission, after investigating the incident, recommended that McCree be removed from the bench, or, if re-elected, be placed on a six-year suspension without pay. Such a suspension would effectively nullify the judge's re-election. The Michigan Supreme Court is responsible for deciding the appropriate discipline, though they have until July 2014 to make the call.
Charlie Langton, a FOX 2 legal analyst, said,
| “ | I don't think the voters of Wayne County are going to put him back in office after what he did…It's a colossal waste of time for Wade McCree to run an election, win and for the Supreme Court to say, 'You're done.'[17][7] | ” |
Others believe that the judge's personal life is none of their business. The vote totals will ultimately decide the public's opinion.
For more information on the judge, see: Wade Harper McCree
For a video containing parts of McCree's testimony before the Judicial Tenure Commission, see: My Fox Detroit, "The strange testimony of Judge Wade McCree," May 23, 2013
Missouri legislator, county prosecutor to battle for associate judgeship
Missouri: Two have filed to run for the seat of retiring Pettis County Associate Judge Robert M. Liston, including a Missouri state legislator. County Prosecutor Jeff Mittelhauser was the first to file for the Division 6 seat. Opposing Mittelhauser is Stanley Cox, a member of the Missouri House, representing District 52.[18]
Mittelhauser has been a prosecutor in the Pettis County Prosecutor’s Office for 28 years and was an assistant for four years before that. Regarding the judgeship, he said,
| “ | It has been a goal of mine for a long time…I think any trial lawyer pictures himself or herself as a judge.[19][7] | ” |
Cox was also a prosecutor for the county from 1979 to 1982, and has worked in private practice. He was elected to the House in 2006.[20] When announcing his candidacy for the judgeship last September, he stated,
| “ | I feel that this is a good opportunity to continue in public service to the people of Pettis County.[21][7] | ” |
Cox and Mittelhauser will face each other for the 18th Circuit bench in a Republican primary election, to take place on August 5.[18]
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ The Chicago Tribune, "For the appellate, circuit courts," March 9, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Chicago Tribune, "For the appellate, circuit courts," March 09, 2014
- ↑ James Kaplan campaign website: Bar Ratings & Endorsements, accessed March 13, 2014
- ↑ Ralph E. Meczyk: About, accessed March 13, 2014
- ↑ The Windy City Media Group, "ELECTIONS 2014: JUDGES LGBT candidates Rice and Crawley eye the bench," March 5, 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 Dallas News, "County judge’s one-vote defeat in east Texas – the slimmest statewide – tied to hospital concerns," March 5, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2014 Primary Election Contest/Candidate List"
- ↑ Florida Times-Union, "Judge candidates crank up campaigns in Brunswick circuit," by Terry Dickenson, January 15, 2014
- ↑ Karen's Calendar: "Mary Helen Moses for Superior Court Judge (Brunswick Circuit)," by October 24, 2010
- ↑ GA Pundit, "Mary Helen Moses Announces for Brunswick Judicial Circuit Superior Court," by Tod Rehm, January 15, 2014
- ↑ Mercer University Free Press, Spotlight: Visiting professor Mary Helen Moses, by Krisi Hartig, April 10, 2012. Date accessed: March 12, 2014
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 The News-Herald, "Lake County Elections Board removes appeals court candidate from primary ballot," March 4, 2014
- ↑ The Ohio Secretary of State, "2014 Ohio Candidate Requirement Guide," December 24, 2013
- ↑ The News-Herald, "Northeast Ohio appeals court judicial candidate has residency questioned," February 25, 2015
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "Affidavit of Candidacy - Wade Harper McCree," February 21, 2014
- ↑ My Fox Detroit, "Wade McCree files paperwork, running for judge again," March 11, 2014
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 SedaliaDemocrat.com, “Filing opens for county, state races,” February 26, 2014
- ↑ The Sedalia Weekly Observer, "Mittelhauser lists accomplishments in Prosecutors Office," February 20, 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia: Stanley Cox
- ↑ The Sedalia Weekly Observer, "Rep. Cox to run for Division 6 circuit judge," September 17, 2013
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