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Walter Schwarm
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2009 - Present
2031
16
Walter P. Schwarm is a judge of the Superior Court of Orange County in California. He assumed office in 2009. His current term ends on January 6, 2031.
Schwarm won re-election for judge of the Superior Court of Orange County in California outright in the primary on March 5, 2024, after the primary and general election were canceled.
Biography
Education
Schwarm received a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Irvine and a J.D. from California Western School of Law.[1]
Career
- 2009-Present: Judge, Superior Court of Orange County
- 1989-2009: Deputy district attorney and assistant district attorney, Orange County District Attorney's Office[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Municipal elections in Orange County, California (2024)
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Walter P. Schwarm (Nonpartisan) won the election without appearing on the ballot.
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Schwarm in this election.
2018
Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled. Walter P. Schwarm (Nonpartisan) won the election without appearing on the ballot.
2012
- See also: California judicial elections, 2012
Schwarm ran for re-election to the superior court in 2012. As an unopposed incumbent, his name did not appear on the ballot. After the primary election, Schwarm was automatically re-elected.[2]
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan election
The 1,535 judges of the California Superior Courts compete in nonpartisan races in even-numbered years. If a candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in the June primary election, he or she is declared the winner; if no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff between the top two candidates is held during the November general election.[3][4][5][6]
If an incumbent judge is running unopposed in an election, his or her name does not appear on the ballot. The judge is automatically re-elected following the general election.[3]
The chief judge of any given superior court is selected by peer vote of the court's members. He or she serves in that capacity for one or two years, depending on the county.[3]
Qualifications
Candidates are required to have 10 years of experience as a law practitioner or as a judge of a court of record.[3]
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Walter P. Schwarm did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
Noteworthy cases
Schwarm signs order making Mission Viejo the first California city to use cumulative voting in municipal elections (2018)
On July 26, 2018, Judge Walter Schwarm, of the Superior Court of Orange County, signed an order establishing the use of cumulative voting in Mission Viejo municipal elections beginning in 2020, marking the conclusion of a challenge to the city's electoral system initiated by Kevin Shenkman, an election law attorney, on behalf of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project on September 26, 2017. On that date, Shenkman filed a letter with city officials alleging that Mission Viejo's at-large electoral system for city council seats violated the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA): "Mission Viejo’s at-large system dilutes the ability of Latinos (a ‘protected class’) — to elect candidates of their choice or otherwise influence the outcome of Mission Viejo’s council elections." A series of five public hearings on the matter ensued. On February 13, 2018, the Mission Viejo City Council voted unanimously to pursue an alternative voting system after concluding that district elections would not ameliorate the CVRA violation alleged by Shenkman. On July 20, 2018, Shenkman and Mission Viejo City Attorney Bill Curley requested that Schwarm order the use of cumulative voting in future council elections.[7]
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Orange County Register, "Schwarzenegger names two to O.C. Superior Court," July 16, 2009
- ↑ Orange County Registrar of Voters, "Candidate's Handbook for the Presidential Primary Election," June 5, 2012 (Scroll to pages 31-32)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: California," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Safeguarding California's judicial election process," August 21, 2011
- ↑ California Elections Code, "Section 8203," accessed May 21, 2014
- ↑ California Elections Code, "Section 8140-8150," accessed May 21, 2014
- ↑ Voice of OC, "Mission Viejo Likely First California City to Use Cumulative Voting," July 27, 2018
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
