Richard Zimmer (California)

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Richard Zimmer

Nonpartisan

Superior Court of Orange County

Tenure

2025 - Present

Term ends

2031

Years in position

0

Report an officeholder change

Elections and appointments

Last elected

March 5, 2024

Education

High school

Mater Dei High School

Bachelor's

Claremont McKenna College, 1999

Law

William and Mary School of Law, 2003

Personal

Profession

Deputy District Attorney

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Instagram

Richard Zimmer is a judge of the Superior Court of Orange County in California. Zimmer assumed office on January 6, 2025. Zimmer's current term ends on January 6, 2031.

Zimmer won election for judge of the Superior Court of Orange County in California outright in the primary on March 5, 2024, after the general election was canceled.

Zimmer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Richard Zimmer graduated from Mater Dei High School. Zimmer earned a bachelor's degree from Claremont McKenna College in 1999 and a law degree from William and Mary School of Law in 2003. Zimmer's career experience includes working as a deputy district attorney.

Elections

2024

See also: Municipal elections in Orange County, California (2024)

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Superior Court of Orange County

Richard Zimmer won election outright against Binh Dang in the primary for Superior Court of Orange County on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Richard Zimmer (Nonpartisan)	74.5	415,165
		Binh Dang (Nonpartisan)	25.5	142,008

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 557,173
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Zimmer in this election.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Richard Zimmer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Zimmer's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I am proud to be endorsed by leadership across Orange County including Sheriff Don Barnes, District Attorney Todd Spitzer, police, prosecutors, victims’ rights advocates, elected officials, dozens of judges, police associations, and the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs representing thousands of peace officers.

For 17-years I have dedicated my career to protecting the people of Orange County. I have prosecuted the most serious crimes including child molestation, rape, armed robbery, gang crimes, and attempted murder, while ensuring our justice system supported and protected crime survivors.

As a supervising Deputy District Attorney, I understand the impacts that violent crime, substance abuse, and mental illness have on individuals, their families, and our community. I am a married father of two children and understand the importance of safeguarding our neighborhoods.

With my extensive frontline legal experience, I am prepared to serve as Superior Court Judge from day one. I will follow the law and make sure that criminals are justly punished while treating everyone with dignity, understanding, and respect.

I ask that you join Orange County police, prosecutors, victims’ rights advocates, and judges in supporting my election for Superior Court Judge.

I respectfully ask for your vote.

Knowledgeable. Honorable. Experienced.

www.Zimmer4Judge.com

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Protect Public Safety
• Ensure Victims' Rights
• Apply the law fairly and uphold our Constitution

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I believe access to justice is a critical issue. Ensuring that all of our citizens have access to our court system is vital.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

A judge must possess humility, patience, empathy, reasonableness and integrity.

Why are you running for this particular court seat?

I have dedicated my career to public service and I believe a judge can have a tremendous positive impact on the community. I believe that becoming a judge is one of the highest forms of public service that a lawyer can provide. At its heart, a judge is a position of service - service to the community, service to the justice system, and service to each and every person who comes into a judge’s courtroom.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2024 Elections

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Government

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Newsletters

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External links

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Candidate

Superior Court of Orange County

Website

Instagram

Footnotes

California courts

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Federal courts:

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Central District of California, Eastern District of California, Northern District of California, Southern District of California

State courts:

California Supreme Court • California Courts of Appeal • California Superior Courts

State resources:

Courts in California • California judicial elections • Judicial selection in California