Florida judicial elections, 2014

Spotlight on the Sunshine State

A look at Florida's Fourth Appellate District

Different states have unique approaches to the judicial selection process. In Florida, appellate judges are appointed by merit selection and subject to retention elections at the end of their six-year terms.^[9] In retention elections, voters are presented with a "yes" or "no" choice to retain the judicial candidates. No opposing candidates are presented to voters on the ballot. If a judge fails to be retained by receiving a majority of "no" votes, which rarely occurs, the governor appoints a replacement. As of 2014, the current salary for a Florida appellate judge was $154,140 a year.^[10]

On November 4, 2014, voters in Florida's Fourth District voted on the retention of four judges: Alan O. Forst, Martha Warner, W. Matthew Stevenson, and Mark W. Klingensmith. The Fourth District encompasses Indian River, St. Lucie, Okeechobee, Martin, Palm Beach and Broward counties. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reviews challenged cases from lower courts. In the court, defendants can contest the manner in which their cases were handled, prosecutors can challenge the ruling of a trial court judge and civil litigants can argue a jury's verdict. After a case is decided in the appeals court, any future challenges are presented to the Florida Supreme Court.^[10]

Jurisdiction of the Florida District Courts of Appeal

Alan O. Forst was appointed to the court on March 7, 2013, by Governor Rick Scott. Prior to his appointment, he served as chairman of the Florida Reemployment Assistance Appeals Commission for 12 years. Forst earned his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and later received his J.D. from the Catholic University of America. The Florida Bar polled its members on their opinions of the appellate judges up for retention in 2014. 79 percent of respondents in the poll recommended Forst's retention.^[10][11]

Martha Warner received her undergraduate degree from The Colorado College in 1971 and her J.D. from the University of Florida School of Law in 1974. She worked as an attorney in private practice from 1974 until 1985, when she was elected to the Nineteenth Circuit Court. In 1989 she was appointed to the Fourth District Court of Appeal by Governor Bob Martinez, and in 1995 she earned her LL.M. from the University of Virginia. Since her original appointment, she has been retained by voters in 1990, 1996, 2002 and 2008. 93 percent of the respondents to the Florida Bar's poll recommended Warner for retention.^[10][12]

W. Matthew Stevenson graduated from Florida State University in 1975 and received his J.D. from the Florida State College of Law in 1978. He was first appointed to the Fourth District Court of Appeal by Governor Lawton Chiles in 1994, and was retained in 1996, 2002 and 2008. Prior to serving on the appellate court, he served as a judge on the Fifteenth Circuit Court from 1990 until 1994. Stevenson received 92 percent in favor of his retention in the Florida Bar's poll.^[10][13]

Florida Bar poll gives voters insight into judicial elections

Florida voters who want to learn more about the state's 2014 judicial merit retention elections benefited from knowing the opinions of the state's attorneys, and it appeared that sitting judges had the approval of the vast majority of Florida's legal community.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

As it has done every alternate year since 1978, the Florida Bar conducted a poll of its membership and published the results, along with a voter information guide (published in Spanish and English) that seeks to help Floridians understand the judicial elections process, the importance of participation, and the role that judges fulfill in civil society. In 2014, voters decided whether or not 22 appellate court judges should retain their seats.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title

The poll, which is conducted by mail, surveys Florida Bar members of good standing and asks participants to indicate whether judges should be retained or not, using a scale of eight attributes to make their decision. Attributes include: quality and clarity of opinions, knowledge of the law, integrity, judicial temperament, impartiality, freedom from bias-prejudice, demeanor, and courtesy.^[15]

The results, published in early September, demonstrated strong support for all judges up for retention among Florida Bar members with an average rating of 88 percent. "Most Florida citizens do not have reason to be in our appeals courts..." said Florida Bar President Gregory W. Coleman, "[i]t can be difficult for them to assess judicial performance." The results of the poll gave Florida voters "an excellent resource" for determining how judges are evaluated by the people who deal with them most, says Coleman.^[16]

Florida incumbent defeats challenger in primary

Judge Chris Nash

A high profile challenger was defeated in the race for Florida's Hillsborough County Court. Incumbent Chris Nash defeated challenger Norman S. Cannella, Jr., receiving 65.2 percent of the votes to Cannella's 34.8 percent.^[17] While it is not unusual for incumbent judges to take the victory in contested races, the race for Nash's seat drew considerable attention due to the legendary reputation within the legal community held by Cannella's father. As reported in Judgepedia's July 31 Election Brief, Norman Cannella Sr. was a well-known criminal defense lawyer in the Tampa area. Cannella, Jr. hoped to capitalize on his father's reputation in his bid for the judgeship, stating in an interview that, "People appreciate that maybe they don't know me as well as my father, but they can see that normally, the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree."^[9]

Norman Cannella

Florida incumbent loses primary after allegations of campaign misconduct

A Florida incumbent judge lost in the primary after one of his campaign fliers was the subject of a complaint filed with the Judicial Qualifications Commission. Steven B. Feren, who was first elected to the Seventeenth Circuit Court in 2008, was challenged by John Patrick Contini for his seat. During the campaign, Feren's campaign mailed a flier claiming that Contini had a "history of lying and skirting the law, struggles with addiction and right-wing supporters."^[20]

While judicial campaigns are generally less negative than their legislative counterparts, ads opposing other candidates are permitted in Florida when done by a committee. The actions of judicial campaigns are governed by the Florida Supreme Court's Code of Judicial Conduct, which states that a judicial candidate is not permitted to "knowingly misrepresent the identity, qualifications, present position or other fact concerning the candidate or an opponent," and that candidates "shall maintain the dignity appropriate to judicial office and act in a manner consistent with the impartiality, integrity, and independence of the judiciary."^[20]

Buddy Nevins of the Broward Beat believed that Feren's flier constituted an infraction of this rule, stating that, "the piece creates the impression that Contini is a liar, skirts the law and struggles with addiction today. That’s a misrepresentation, if not a downright falsehood."^[21] In response to Nevins' article, blogger Chaz Stevens filed a complaint on Friday, August 22, with the Judicial Qualifications Commission against Feren on August 22, alleging that he broke the Code of Judicial Conduct with the flier.^[21]

Newcomers perform well in Florida's Miami-Dade County elections

Miami-Dade County, Florida

While new judicial hopefuls in Florida's most populous county performed well in Tuesday's primary, some incumbents struggled to pull votes.^[22]

Over fifty judicial candidates filed to run for election or re-election in Miami-Dade County in 2014, though only those facing opposition appeared on primary ballot. Of the seventeen candidates who did compete in the primary, only four were incumbents—and of those four, only one secured re-election.^[22]

In Florida, candidates garnering more than 50 percent of the primary vote win the election by default. If no candidate receives a majority, the top two candidates face each other in the general election. This was the situation that County Judge Jacqueline Schwartz found herself in; having missed the 50 percent mark by only 0.6 percent in a three-way race against Frank C. Bocanegra and Rachel Glorioso Dooley. Sh was then required to compete against Bocanegra in November.^[22]

Two other incumbents were not so lucky. Circuit Judge Fleur J. Lobree found herself unseated by defense lawyer Mavel Ruiz, and County Judge Nuria Saenz lost the primary to personal injury attorney Victoria Ferrer. Only incumbent Rodney Smith, a circuit judge with widespread support in the regional law community, defeated his challenger Christian Carrazana by a comfortable margin.^[22]

7 incumbents defeated in Florida primary

In most elections, incumbents are considered to hold a definite advantage. This is even more significant in less-publicized judicial elections, where voters may not be as familiar with the candidates. However, during Florida's big primary election on August 26, 2014, seven different judges across the state were defeated.

Circuit court judges

• Fleur J. Lobree, of the 11th Circuit Court in Miami, was defeated by Mavel Ruiz after receiving 45.6 percent of the vote.
• Diana Lewis, of the 15th Circuit Court in Palm Beach County, was defeated by Jessica Ticktin after receiving 45.6 percent of the vote.
• Tegan Slaton, of the 16th Circuit Court in Monroe County, was edged out by Jack Bridges and Bonnie J. Helms after receiving 23.0 percent of the vote.
• Steven B. Feren, of the 17th Circuit Court in Broward County, was defeated by John Patrick Contini after receiving 48.6 percent of the vote.

County court judges

• Cynthia S. Munkittrick, of the Dixie County Court, was narrowly defeated by Jennifer J. Ellison after receiving 49.8 percent of the vote.
• Nuria Saenz, of the Miami-Dade County Court, was defeated by Victoria Ferrer after receiving 36.3 percent of the vote.
• Peter A.D. McGlashan, of the Volusia County Court, was defeated by Angela Dempsey after receiving 40.7 percent of the vote.

These defeated incumbents left office at the end of their terms on January 5, 2015.

Florida primary election preview

The Florida judicial primary was a big deal for many in the state. Over 100 candidates faced contested elections on August 26, 2014, and anyone of them who received over 50 percent of the votes were elected without having to run in November. This made the primary especially key for races with only two candidates. Those races were indicated by an asterisk in the table below.

Impartiality v. Perception: A campaign promise retracted prior to election

Florida Fifteenth Circuit Court candidate Peggy Rowe-Linn pledged to support a constitutional amendment making all abortions illegal in the state, no matter the underlying circumstances leading to the pregnancy. She was one of 300 judicial candidates in Florida who signed the pledge. Rowe-Linn made headlines, however, because she later backed away from that pledge due to questions concerning her impartiality regarding the pro-life issue.

Rowe-Linn released a statement on her decision to take back her pledge:

Rowe-Linn had not hidden her closely held Catholic faith from voters or her opponents. She completed candidate questionnaires that were published in which she discussed the importance of her faith in all areas of her life.

The group that asked candidates to sign the pledge, the Personhood FL ProLife PAC, said some of the judicial candidates they contacted refused to sign the pledge, citing a canon of judicial conduct as the reason. Canon 7 requires that a judge or judicial candidate may not make any statements that could be construed as committing him or herself to a certain stance prior to a case being heard in the courtroom. However, as Michael Schneider of Florida's Judicial Qualifications Commission pointed out, "the hallmark of the judicial position is impartiality – that you give everybody a fair shake and you don't predetermine your ruling on something."^[25] Schneider acknowledged that this need for impartiality in judges, and judicial candidates, was in conflict with a candidate's right to speak freely and express their stance on the issues.

Some questioned whether any judicial candidate signing the pro-life pledge violated any rules, canons, or ethical guidelines put in place by the Florida Bar, the agency that governs lawyers running for judicial seats in Florida. A bar spokesperson indicated that signing the pledge supporting an organization or group was not a canon violation, but the bar would look at each case individually rather than provide a general opinion on the matter.

Rowe-Linn's opponents, Jaime Goodman and Maxine Cheesman, both questioned the wisdom of signing such a pledge given the need for judicial impartiality on the bench. Goodman said that "[he] believe[s] it's conduct barring [Rowe-Linn] from being the impartial judge that the Palm Beach County community deserves."^[25] Cheesman thinks the real issue was more than whether Rowe-Linn can be impartial; it was whether litigants woudl believe she would remain impartial when they appear before her in court. "There has to be that appearance of impartiality because when someone comes before you, if they think you have preconceived notions, they're not going to feel they're being heard fairly. It might just be a perception, but perception is very important as well."

Two challengers face incumbent in Seminole County judicial election

Jerri L. Collins, judge for the Seminole County Court in Florida, faced two challengers in the primary on August 26. Sandra Rivera and Alex Finch challenged the sitting judge who had been on the bench for eight years.^[26] Her challengers had one thing in common; they both filed for bankruptcy.^[27]

Jerri L. Collins, originally from southern Illinois, obtained a B.A. from Eastern Illinois University and earned her J.D. from Mercer University. She moved to Longwood, Florida, in 1990 to marry her husband, Mike Pinnock. After being admitted to the Florida Bar in 1991, she began a legal career as an assistant state attorney for Seminole County. She left this job to open a private practice, but would return to the Seminole County State Attorney's office later to lead a new unit dedicated to prosecuting crimes against the elderly and disabled. In 2005, she was appointed to the Seminole County Court by Governor Jeb Bush. Speaking of his decision to appoint Collins, the Governor stated, "Your appointment is evidence of my utmost confidence in your ability to fulfill these obligations with excellence and distinction."^[26]

Sandra Rivera at the time of the election was a solo practitioner for the Law Offices of Sandra Rivera P.A. which she founded in 2012. She graduated in 1999 from Salem College and earned her J.D. from the Florida State University School of Law in 2001. She began her legal career as an assistant state attorney for the Florida 9th Circuit Court in 2002. in 2011 she left to pursue a career in private practice.^[28] She is a member of the Orange County Bar Association and the Seminole County Bar Association, Hispanic Bar Association, and also serves as a volunteer guardian ad litem for the Orange County Legal Aid Society.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many

After graduating from Oviedo High School in 1981, Alex Finch served four years as a Russian linguist in the U.S. Army, where he was granted a top secret security clearance. After rising to the rank of sergeant he was honorably discharged in July 1985. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Central Florida and his J.D. from the University of Florida College of Law. As of 2014, he had been an attorney for 20 years, with experience in corporate, transactional and litigation matters.^[29]

Florida 4th Circuit Court race may come down to money

In an election where candidates are prohibited from forecasting how they would rule or criticizing the statements of their opponent, much of the campaign for Florida's Fourth Circuit Court judge came down to a familiar political factor: money.^[30]

Jacksonville attorneys Anthony Paul Penoso and Mike Sharrit ran for the court's open seat that was vacated by Judge Brad Stetson, and though they were not able to differentiate themselves in terms of judicial philosophy, their ability to fundraise had clearly set them apart, with Penoso raising approximately $6,400 to Sharrit's $177,000. Sharrit also won the endorsement count with 31 elected officials who pledged their support for his candidacy, while Penoso seemingly had no official endorsements.^[30]

Penoso remained undeterred, and stated on his campaign's Facebook page that he started his law practice on his own with only $600, no experience and no clients. He argued that his 20 years of experience representing "a cross-section of the people" made him the best qualified candidate and would restore people's faith in the judiciary.^[31] "While money is a very important factor," Penoso says, "it's not the only thing."^[30]

Sharrit, who also lent himself $100,000 in campaign cash, had focused on his experience as a partner at a Jacksonville law firm as well as his appointments to several Florida Bar committees as evidence of his qualifications.^[30] "I believe in the rule of law with accountability, while always assuring individual rights and protecting public safety" Sharrit stated on his official campaign website. "Absolute fairness in the courtroom means no preferences shown to anyone on any basis. Every person is entitled to justice."^[32]

Florida Coastal University School of Law professor Rod Sullivan predicted that the candidate with the most money would probably win the election. When candidates are limited in what they can say to appeal to voters, he stated, "it increases the importance of forms of campaign speech which cost money, but contain no messages," including "signs, brochures, print advertising, television and radio."^[30]

Candidate changes campaign materials after criticism

There was a four-way race for the bench in the Seventeenth Circuit Court of Florida. As the campaigns geared up for the August 26 primary, one of the candidates encountered backlash for issuing two different versions of campaign cards. Dennis Bailey was criticized for handing out campaign cards featuring the image of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and listing prominent supporters in the black community. The cards did not include Bailey's picture, who is white. Bailey also handed out a different version of campaign card displaying his own picture and listing his endorsements from the Police Benevolent Association and the Fraternal Order of Police. The cards featuring Rev. King's image did not list these particular endorsements. According to Bailey, some critics accused him of attempting to pass himself as black in a black community, an allegation he denied.^[33]

Corey Shearer, president of the Broward County Democratic Black Caucus has criticized Bailey on Facebook and in fliers with the headline, "Warning! There is a fox in the hen house." Shearer confronted Bailey about the cards before a recent judicial candidates' forum in Pembroke Pines. In his defense, Bailey explained that he removed the black community leaders at the same time as he replaced Rev. King's image with his own because at that time he had received the police groups' endorsements. He stated that he believed it was more strategic to advertise the group endorsements rather than the four individual black leaders he had originally displayed. As their discussion progressed, Shearer told Bailey that he felt it was inappropriate to use Rev. King's image on the cards to which Bailey responded, "I respect that."^[33]

In an interview, Bailey explained that he wasn't attempting to target white voters with one set of cards and black voters with the other. Other candidates and political consultants said they're aware of the two versions of Bailey's campaign card. Rhoda Sokoloff, one of Bailey's three opponents, declined to discuss Bailey's cards with the Sun Sentinel, stating "I may have an opinion, but I'm not going to say what my opinion is." Another opponent, Andrea Ruth Gundersen, told the paper that she had seen the two editions of Bailey's cards, but "It's not my place to judge my opponent and what he chooses to do or not do. If he chooses to do that that's his business."^[33]

A Nova Southeastern University professor of history and legal studies specializing in politics and voting, Charles Zelden, explained that using two different campaign pitches was not a good strategy. "Politicians need to remember the basic rule today: Nothing is invisible anymore. You just don't do that today because somebody's going to catch you. In the past, you might have been able to get away with it." On both versions of the cards in question, Bailey included a quote from Rev. King, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." Zelden said, "He picked a good quote. He should have stuck with it and left it with that."^[33]

No election after all for Fourth Circuit Court

Under a decision released by a Florida circuit court, Judge Donald Moran of the 4th Judicial Circuit was to be replaced by appointment rather than election.^[35]

Moran, who submitted notice of his retirement to Governor Rick Scott earlier in 2014, postdated his resignation for January 2, three days before the scheduled conclusion of his term. While the judge could have ended his service by simply not seeking re-election in 2014, the short period of vacancy between his retirement and his term expiration created the need for gubernatorial appointment of a successor under Florida election code. Moran specifically noted in his letter of resignation that he would prefer that his successor be appointed and not elected.^[35]

Upon Moran's announcement, the Florida Department of Elections closed the race and announced that the governor would seek an appointed successor to serve until the next general election in 2016.^[35]

David Trotti, a Jacksonville attorney who had qualified to run for Moran's seat before the election closed, sued and argued that Moran's timing was designed expressly to avoid an election.^[35] But Tallahassee Circuit Judge George Reynolds rejected his arguments:

Trotti's attorney Nicholas James expressed disappointment with the ruling, commenting that Moran "hung his hat on that one-day vacancy" and in reality wasn't resigning at all, just leaving at the end of his term. James worried that Reynolds' ruling might encourage other judges to resign in order to bypass voter accountability.^[35]

Candidate suggests conspiracy behind elections website error

A judicial candidate in Broward County, Florida, lashed out against the Supervisor of Elections after an error on the elections website failed to list him, as well as a number of other candidates, on a sample ballot.

The issue involved a specific link on the county's elections website that led visitors to an incorrect sample ballot that was missing the names of various candidates. The issue was discovered on July 29. The elections office quickly removed the faulty link once it was pointed out to them by the Sun Sentinel and a political consultant. The number of people who saw the wrong sample ballot remained unknown.

John Contini, who ran for election to the Seventeenth Circuit Court, suggested that Brenda Snipes, the Broward County Supervisor of Elections, may have purposefully omitted his name from the sample ballot. He pointed to his representation of the former supervisor of elections, Miriam Oliphant, whose removal from office paved the way for Snipes to take her place. Contini explained to the Sun Sentinel:

Contini also said that he was "contemplating legal action."^[36]

Hillsborough County Court race is one to watch

The son of a prominent Florida lawyer challenged an incumbent on the Hillsborough County Court. Norman S. Cannella, Jr. challenged Judge Chris Nash in the primary on August 26.

Cannella's father, Norman Cannella Sr., was a well-known criminal defense lawyer in the Tampa area. His son worked as a criminal defense lawyer, representing notable clients such as radio personality Bubba the Love Sponge Clem. Prior to that, he served as assistant state attorney from 1996 to 2001. A formidable candidate for the bench, Cannella hoped to both build on his father's legacy and establish his own, stating in the Tampa Bay Times, "People appreciate that maybe they don't know me as well as my father, but they can see that normally, the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree."^[37]

The contested races of Florida's 20th Circuit

There was two contested races in Florida's Twentieth Circuit Court in 2014. The 20th Circuit serves the counties of Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee.

Twentieth Circuit Court - Group 16: Incumbent Amy R. Hawthorne was appointed by Governor Scott on February 7, 2013, to fill the vacancy created by Judge John W. Dommerich. She squared off against Steven S. Leskovich in the Group 16 primary.

Hawthorne had been in private practice since 1998. She served as an assistant public defender from 1993 to 1998 and worked as a general magistrate for the Twentieth Circuit Court from 2010 to 2011. In the press release announcing Hawthorne's appointment, Governor Scott stated that, "Amy's handling of cases as a civil magistrate has shown a clear understanding of the application of the law in a consistent and predictable manner."^[38]

On her campaign website, Hawthorne listed her active membership in the Fort Myers Rotary Club as well as previously serving on the board of directors for the Florida Rural Legal Services and Florida Equal Justice Center. In 2012, she was a member of the Hope Hospice Celebration of Women Committee.^[39]

At the time of the election, Leskovich was employed as a managing partner in the law firm of Galasso & Leskovich, LLC. After earning his B.B.A. degree in economics with honors from Ohio's Kent State University, he attended the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Michigan. Leskovich began his legal career as an assistant public defender for the Twentieth Circuit in Lee County, Florida. In 2002, he began working for a private criminal defense law firm in Fort Myers.

Leskovich's website listed his civic involvement on the board of directors for the Southwest Florida Safety Council. He formerly served on the board for the Charlotte County Homeless Coalition. He served as a member of both the Charlotte and Lee County Bar Associations and as a member of the Charlotte County Chamber of Commerce and of the Punta Gorda Chamber of Commerce. In addition, Leskovich was also a member of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.^[40]

Twentieth Circuit Court - Group 3: Vying for the vacancy in Group 3, Robert Branning and Mary Evans are preparing for the primary election.

Branning was a partner for his Fort Myers firm Rehak & Branning, LLC. The firm focuses on family matters, estate planning, and criminal defense. He also taught law and ethics courses as an adjunct professor at Southwest Florida College. He formerly worked as an instructor at the Southwest Florida Institute for Public Safety and also formerly worked as a prosecutor for the Office of the State Attorney, 20th Judicial Circuit. He was an active member of the Lee County Chapter of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, he previously served as president of the organization. Branning received his law degree from the Mississippi College School of Law.^[41]

Three challengers face embattled incumbent in county court primary

Three challengers squared off in the August 26 primary against incumbent Judge Kathryn Nelson of the St. Lucie County Court in Florida. Lawyers Roseanna Bronhard, Albert B. Moore and Leonard S. Villafranco attempted to defeat Nelson, who was arrested in 2011 and charged on counts of DUI with property damage and resisting arrest without violence.^[43][44] Nelson, 55, served on the St. Lucie County Court since 2005 and raised a total of $24,710 for her campaign from loans and donations so far, according to the TCPalm.^[45]

Challenger Roseanna Bronhard, 48, is a resident of Port St. Lucie.^[43] She earned her J.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1990. Bronhard later received her LL.M. in taxation from New York University. A member of the Florida Bar for over 21 years, she worked as an attorney in Florida for nearly a decade. Her work experience also includes serving as a judicial staff attorney/trial court law clerk from 1993 to 1997 and as a court probate counsel in Broward County from 1997 to 2002.^[46] The TCPalm reported that Bronhard, as of June 12, had not received any donations to her campaign but had loaned her campaign $7,856 and had spent almost that much.^[45]

Albert B. Moore, 49, is a resident of Fort Pierce.^[43] He has practiced law in St. Lucie County since 1990. Additionally, he served as a traffic hearing officer in both St. Lucie and Martin counties. Moore was also appointed as general master for the St. Lucie County judicial system, where he heard cases under the supervision of a circuit judge on mental health, family law and dependency.^[47] As of June 12, Moore reported a total of $4,675 in contributions from 19 donors and loaned his campaign $53,750, for a total of $58,425. The records indicated he had spent $22,134 of that money.

The battle for Florida's 16th Judicial Circuit Court

Two challengers faced off in the August 26 primary against incumbent Tegan Slaton in the race for Florida's 16th Judicial Circuit Court. Jack Bridges and Bonnie J. Helms both ran against Slaton in hopes of taking his seat on the bench.

Bridges, a resident of Upper Keys, currently serves as a board member for the Mosquito Control District. He was elected to serve as the Mosquito Control Commissioner for Monroe County in 2010. He became an attorney in 1999, and in 2012 he was appointed to the position of circuit civil magistrate.^[49][50]

Helms has lived in the Florida Keys for 20 years. Her judicial career focused on family law and mediation. In 1994, she started her own law firm, and one year later she was certified as a circuit civil mediator. In 2008, Helms became a supreme court certified family law mediator. According to her campaign website, she was actively involved in Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the Women’s Club of Key West, and the Zonta Club of Key West.^[51]

Slaton was first elected to the bench on November 4, 2008. His prior experience includes serving as an assistant public defender and as an attorney in private practice. A member of the Florida Bar, he had been practicing law for 23 years.^[52]

On June 12, Slaton fell asleep during a hearing, which he claims to have been caused by the interaction of a new prescription he received for Ambien and another medication prescribed for gastrointestinal issues.^[53] Slaton had taken the drug the two nights prior to the trial. Recounting the hearing, Slaton stated in the Keys Info Net that, "about five or 10 minutes into it, I started losing it, hallucinating again."^[53] Slaton was relieved for the rest of the day by County Judge Wayne Miller.

Preferring sleep deprivation to the side effects of Ambien, Slaton decided to stop taking the prescription. In response to the question of whether voters in the upcoming election should consider his health in their decision, Slaton replied, "No one is guaranteed a sunset. Talk to people who know me -- any attorney, any law enforcement agent, any of your county commissioners, any of your Mosquito Control commissioners... The Ambien issue is never going to happen again."^[53]

Judge Tegan Slaton

Jack Bridges

Bonnie Helms

One judicial candidate secures pre-election win

Elsewhere in Florida, 12 candidates competed for five open seats in Hillsborough County. The Brandon Bar Association recently held a "meet the candidates night" for voters to learn more about those running, but the only people who showed up were attorneys and law students. Adam Bantner, a local attorney said because judges must remain neutral when talking about their experience and skills that "it's all cut and dry and boring and nobody cares about" judge candidates.^[55]

Bantner said this kind of thinking was a mistake because judges have a lot power to affect the average citizen. He noted "most people don't realize how important judicial elections are", but said judges make decisions that affect all citizens and help people resolve controversies.^[55]

Open seats, swing districts attract challengers in Florida

Four sitting judges on the Broward County Court faced challengers, and two dozen ran unopposed. Additionally, six candidates competed for two open seats on the court.^[36]

Seventeenth Circuit Court judges in some of the state’s key population centers vacated their seats after their terms expired, providing motivation for half a dozen lawyers to compete for the open positions.^[36] Dennis Bailey, Andrea Ruth Gundersen, Rhoda Sokoloff and Russell Thompson competed for a spot on the Seventeenth Circuit Court, group 16, a position that was held by Mel Grossman. The departure of Judge Jeffrey E. Streitfeld left an opening for group 17 of the same circuit, which Julie Shapiro Harris and Stacey Schulman competed for.