Oregon judicial elections, 2014

Oregon judicial elections, 2014
Overview
Total candidates:	78
Primary candidates:	75
General election candidates:	16
Incumbency
Incumbents:	65
Incumbent success rate:	97%
Competition - general election
Percent of candidates in contested races:	37%
Percent uncontested:	63%

2015 → ← 2013
Judicial Elections
Judicial elections, 2014
Judicial election dates
Candidates by state
Supreme court elections

The Oregon judicial elections are nonpartisan elections. In 2014, the majority of races were decided in the primary on May 20. Only three races were left for the general election. Those races were in the 1st, 7th and 19th Judicial Districts. In Oregon, voting is conducted completely by mail.

See: Oregon elections summary, 2014.

Election dates

• March 11: Filing deadline
• May 20: Primary
• November 4: General election

In addition to candidate lists, this page includes information about how the state's judicial elections work, as well as articles about noteworthy news in races across the state.

General election: Contested races

(I) denotes incumbent

Circuit Court, 1st District, Position 2

• David Hoppe, 58.1%A
• J. Adam Peterson (I), 41.9%A

Circuit Court, 19th District, Position 1

• Cathleen B. Callahan, 54.2%A
• Jean Marie Martwick (I), 45.8%A

Circuit Court, 7th District, Seat 3

• Tim Farrell, 24.1%A
• Karen Ostrye (I), 75.9%A

General election: Uncontested

The following candidates were elected or re-elected after running unopposed in the general election.

Trial courts

Court	Candidate
Click the arrows in the column headings to sort columns alphabetically.
Oregon Circuit Court, 20th Judicial District	Beth L. Roberts
Oregon Circuit Court, 3rd Judicial District	Cheryl Pellegrini
Oregon Circuit Court, 2nd Judicial District	Clara Rigmaiden
Oregon Circuit Court, 23rd Judicial District	David E. Delsman
Oregon Circuit Court, 4th Judicial District	Gregory F. Silver
Oregon Circuit Court, 5th Judicial District	Heather Karabeika
Oregon Circuit Court, 1st Judicial District	Kelly Ravassipour
Oregon Circuit Court, 4th Judicial District	Marilyn Litzenberger
Oregon Circuit Court, 21st Judicial District	Matt Donohue
Oregon Circuit Court, 20th Judicial District	Ricardo J. Menchaca

Primary

For candidate lists and results from the judicial primary on May 20, 2014, please see: Oregon judicial primary elections, 2014.

Process

Judges in Oregon participate in nonpartisan elections in even-numbered years.

If a candidate in the primary election receives more than 50% of the vote, she or he is elected. If not, the two candidates with the most votes advance to the general election. The exception to this rule is when the election is for a vacated seat that would not otherwise have been on the ballot.

All judicial races require a primary election except those to fill a midterm vacancy for a seat that would otherwise have not appeared on the ballot that year. In the case of such a midterm vacancy, the primary may be skipped if only one or two candidates file for that office. If there are three or more candidates running for that seat, however, they compete in the primary. If any candidate receives over 50% of the vote in the primary, that candidate's name appears unopposed on the general election ballot. If no candidate receives a majority, then the top two candidates advance to the general election. This differs from regular judicial elections that are held at the end of a judge's term in that no candidates can be elected at the primary.

Oregon votes completely by mail. Registered voters receive a ballot two to three weeks prior to the election, which they must submit by mail or by dropping it in an official drop box. The deadline by which ballots must be received is 8 p.m. on the day of the election.

Noteworthy events

The following articles were current as of the dates listed.

Few Oregon candidates still on campaign trail June 5, 2014

Click for story→

Oregon's primary on May 20 left only two races to be decided in the November general election. In the 1st Judicial District, David Hoppe takes on incumbent J. Adam Peterson. In the 19th Judicial District, Cathleen B. Callahan will challenge incumbent Jean Marie Martwick. Since candidates who receive over 50 percent of the primary vote in Oregon are automatically elected to the bench, the vast majority of races were decided during the May primary. David Hoppe, prior to the election, was a deputy district attorney in Jackson County. Hoppe claimed his experience prosecuting child abuse, adult sexual assault and other crimes makes him a qualified candidate for Peterson's position. Hoppe also worked on divorce cases and child-custody disputes, for five years, in Klamath Falls. Incumbent J. Adam Peterson was appointed to the bench in September 2013 by Governor John Kitzhaber. Peterson's work experience included serving as a deputy district attorney in Jackson County, a special assistant U.S. attorney for the district of Oregon and as a law clerk for the federal district court in Nebraska. Judge Jean Marie Martwick was appointed to the bench in September 2013 by Governor Kitzhaber. In the South County Spotlight she expressed her hope that voters would examine each candidate carefully and emphasized that the job of a judge is about community service. Challenger Cathleen B. Callahan praised Martwick, but cited her own 20 years of involvement with community organizations as proof she’s qualified for the position.

Oregon elects two new judges as incumbents win seats May 22, 2014

Click for story→

See also: JP Election Brief: Don't discount the primaries! Many races already concluded The state's primary, on May 20, 2014, marked the end of most of the state's judicial races, since candidates who received over 50 percent of the votes were elected without having to run in the general election. Only two races are still undecided. Additionally, all but 5 of the 67 total seats up for election were uncontested. The uncontested seats are held by incumbents who will go on to new terms. Two non-incumbent winners emerged from the primary as well. Randy Miller defeated Thomas Spear and Steven Kurzer with 58.7 percent of the vote, earning a seat as a circuit court judge in the 11th Judicial District (Deschutes County). Ladd Wiles defeated Mark Lawrence with 65.1 percent of the vote, winning a circuit court seat in the 25th Judicial District (Yamhill County). Two races were decided in the November general election, because none of the candidates in either race were able to obtain over 50 percent of the primary votes. For circuit judge of the 19th Judicial District, Cathleen Callahan ran against incumbent Judge Jean Marie Martwick. In the primary, Callahan was only about one percentage point behind Martwick. She received 36.4 percent of the votes, while Martwick took 37.7 percent. The third candidate, Jason Heym, was eliminated from the race following the primary. The second race decided in November was for circuit judge of the 1st Judicial District. The candidates were Judge J. Adam Peterson, the incumbent, and David Hoppe. William Francis was eliminated from the race.

See also

• Oregon judicial elections
• Judicial selection in Oregon

External links

• Oregon Secretary of State, "Elections Division"