Retirements, Conflict Set Up Crowded Tarrant Judicial Primaries

Arlington TX

01 February, 2022

6:05 PM

Description

By Rachel Behrndt, Fort Worth Report January 31, 2022 Elected officials are usually tasked with crafting policy that impacts the roads you drive on and the taxes you pay. Judges are elected officials whose power often extends into the personal lives of their constituents: Family ties, property, and personal freedom could be at stake in district courts. District judges across Texas spend an average of eight years on the bench. This year, the retirements and departures of five justices across Tarrant County set the stage for crowded Republican primaries in the family and criminal courts. "Lawyers don't generally run for judges unless there is an opening," Matthew Montgomery, a political science professor at TCU, said. "And, once you win that seat, it's almost certain that you're going to keep it because it's rare someone's going to contest them." Campaigning judges said they are often hesitant to run against sitting judges. Montgomery explains that potential candidates are disincentivized from running against incumbents out of fear that someday they might have to present a case in front of the judge they're trying to unseat. To read the full article, click here. Fort Worth Report is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that produces factual, in-depth journalism about city and county government, schools, healthcare, business, and arts and culture in Tarrant County. Always free to read; subscribe to newsletters, read coverage or support our newsroom at fortworthreport.org.