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Randy Roll
Randy Roll was a judge of the Texas 179th District Court. He left office on December 31, 2020.
Roll (Democratic Party) ran for re-election for judge of the Texas 179th District Court. He lost in the Democratic primary on March 3, 2020.
Roll served as a judge for the same district from 2009 to 2012.[1] He retired from the court at the end of 2012, following an unsuccessful bid for re-election.[2] He ran for election to the 180th District Court in 2014.[3]
Education
Roll received his undergraduate degree from Lamar University and his J.D. from South Texas College of Law.[4]
Career
Roll worked in private practice as a criminal defense attorney and as an in-house counsel for Hawker Siddeley Power Engineering Inc. prior to his election as judge.[4]
Elections
2020
See also: Municipal elections in Harris County, Texas (2020)
General election
General election for Texas 179th District Court
Ana Martinez won election in the general election for Texas 179th District Court on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Ana Martinez (D) | 100.0 | 1,020,728 | |
| Total votes: 1,020,728 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Texas 179th District Court
Ana Martinez defeated incumbent Randy Roll in the Democratic primary for Texas 179th District Court on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Ana Martinez | 79.8 | 197,930 | |
 | Randy Roll | 20.2 | 50,207 | |
| Total votes: 248,137 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Texas held general elections for local judicial offices on November 8, 2016. A primary election took place on March 1, 2016. A primary runoff election was held on May 24, 2016, for any seat where the top vote recipient did not receive a majority of the primary vote.[5] Randy Roll defeated Stephen Aslett in the Texas 179th District Court Democratic primary.[6]
| Texas 179th District Court, Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Randy Roll |
57.90% | 83,727 |
| Stephen Aslett | 42.10% | 60,889 |
| Total Votes | 144,616 | |
| Source: Harris County, Texas, "Democratic Party Cumulative Report-Unofficial," accessed March 2, 2016 | ||
Randy Roll defeated incumbent Kristin Guiney in the Texas 179th District Court general election.
| Texas 179th District Court, General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Randy Roll |
51.04% | 645,965 | |
| Republican | Kristin Guiney Incumbent | 48.96% | 619,612 | |
| Total Votes | 1,265,577 | |||
| Source: Harris County, Texas, "Election Results," accessed December 9, 2016 | ||||
Selection method
- See also: Partisan election of judges
The judges of the Texas District Courts are chosen in partisan elections. They serve four-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to continue serving.[7]
Though Texas is home to more than 400 district courts, the courts are grouped into nine administrative judicial regions. Each region is overseen by a presiding judge who is appointed by the governor to a four-year term. According to the state courts website, the presiding judge may be a "regular elected or retired district judge, a former judge with at least 12 years of service as a district judge, or a retired appellate judge with judicial experience on a district court."[8]
Qualifications
To serve on the district courts, a judge must be:
- a U.S. citizen;
- a resident of Texas;
- licensed to practice law in the state;
- between the ages of 25 and 75;*[9]
- a practicing lawyer and/or state judge for at least four years; and
- a resident of his or her respective judicial district for at least two years.[7]
*While no judge older than 74 may run for office, sitting judges who turn 75 are permitted to continue serving until their term expires.[7]
Endorsements
Roll received endorsements from the following groups in 2016:[10]
- Mexican American Bar Association
- Texas Coalition of Black Democrats
- AFL-CIO
- Houston Stonewall Young Democrats
- Tejano Democrats of Houston
- Houston Black American Democrats
2014
- See also: Texas judicial elections, 2014
Roll ran for election to the 180th District Court.
Primary: He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary on March 4, 2014.
General: He was defeated in the general election on November 4, 2014, after receiving 44.3 percent of the vote. He competed against Catherine Evans.[3]
2012
Roll ran for re-election to the 179th District Court and was defeated by challenger Kristin M. Guiney.[11][2]
- See also: Texas judicial elections, 2012
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Randy Roll did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 179th District
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Harris County, Texas-2012 General Elections Results
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Harris County Texas, "Democratic Party Cumulative Report - March 4, 2014 Primary Election," March 5, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Campaign Website Bio
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Important 2016 Election Dates," accessed December 18, 2015
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "Official candidate list," accessed December 18, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Texas," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ Texas Courts Online, "Administrative Judicial Regions," accessed September 12, 2014
- ↑ Texas State Historical Association, "Judiciary," accessed September 12, 2014
- ↑ Former Judge Randy Roll, "Endorsements," accessed February 18, 2016
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State, "2012 General Election Results," November 6, 2012
Federal courts:
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Texas, Western District of Texas, Northern District of Texas, Southern District of Texas
State courts:
Texas Supreme Court • Texas Court of Appeals • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals • Texas District Courts • Texas County Courts • Texas County Courts at Law • Texas Statutory Probate Courts • Texas Justice of the Peace Courts
State resources:
Courts in Texas • Texas judicial elections • Judicial selection in Texas
