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Superior Court of Riverside County, California

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Superior Court

Ballotpedia:Trial Courts

The Superior Court of Riverside County is one of 58 superior courts in California. It has jurisdiction over Riverside County.[1]

Judges

Judge Tenure Appointed By

Daniel A. Ottolia

2010 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Gail A. O'Rane

2013 - Present

Jerry Brown

Harold W. Hopp

2005 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Otis Sterling III

2012 - Present

Jerry Brown

Sean Lafferty

January 5, 2015 - Present

Election

Randall Stamen

2017 - Present

Jerry Brown

Dean Benjamini

2013 - Present

Jerry Brown

Steve Counelis

2011 - Present

Election

Natalie Lough

January 2, 2023 - Present

Kira Klatchko

2017 - Present

Jerry Brown

Jacqueline C. Jackson

2010 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Joshlyn Pulliam

2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Mark E. Johnson

2009 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Chad Firetag

2015 - Present

Jerry Brown

Jay Kiel

January 2, 2023 - Present

Jason Stone

January 2, 2023 - Present

Kristi Kirk

January 2, 2023 - Present

Sean Crandell

September 3, 2021 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Mark Singerton

July 9, 2021 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Marie Elena Wood

September 3, 2021 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Christopher B. Harmon

2014 - Present

Jerry Brown

Judith C. Clark

2005 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Samuel Diaz Jr.

2009 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Frederick Paul Dickerson III

John D. Molloy

2009 - Present

Election

Mark A. Mandio

Michael J. Rushton

2009 - Present

Election

Bernard Schwartz

2003 - Present

Gov. Gray Davis (D)

Susanne S. Cho

2014 - Present

Jerry Brown

Dorothy McLaughlin

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Jennifer R. Gerard

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Timothy J. Hollenhorst

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Emily A. Benjamini

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Gregory Olson

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Emma Smith

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Scott P. Williams

2024 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Samah Shouka

2018 - Present

Carol A. Greene

2019 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Jeffrey M. Zimel

2020 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Melissa Hale

Gavin Newsom

John G. Evans

2008 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Eric A. Keen

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Cheryl Murphy

2018 - Present

Russell Moore

2018 - Present

Mark Ashton Cope

Michele Mathis

2020 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Joshua Knight

September 3, 2021 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Valerie Navarro

March 25, 2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Jason Armand

2023 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Manuel Bustamante Jr.

March 25, 2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Magdalena Cohen

2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Laura Garcia

2023 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Walter Kubelun

2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Francisco Navarro

2023 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Mona Nemat

2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Gary Polk

2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Jerry Yang

2022 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Kristi Hester

2020 - Present

Gavin Newsom

Raquel A. Marquez

2012 - Present

Jerry Brown

Kenneth J. Fernandez

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

Godofredo Magno

2017 - Present

Jerry Brown

Johnetta Anderson

2018 - Present

Jerry Brown

John W. Vineyard

2011 - Present

Jerry Brown

Matthew C. Perantoni

2013 - Present

Jerry Brown

Elizabeth Tucker

January 6, 2025 - Present

Mark E. Petersen

2007 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Anthony R. Villalobos

2008 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Angel M. Bermudez

2007 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Jorge C. Hernandez

2008 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Timothy F. Freer

2007 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Irma Poole Asberry

2007 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

John M. Monterosso

2007 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Stephen J. Gallon

2009 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Kelly L. Hansen

2009 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Charles J. Koosed

2007 - Present

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Judicial selection

The method of judicial selection for the California Superior Courts is officially by the nonpartisan election of judges, though many judges join the court via gubernatorial appointment to fill vacancies on the court. Appointed judges may serve on the court until the term they are appointed to expires. They must then run in the next general election to continue serving on the court.

If an incumbent superior court judge files for re-election and draws no opponent, the race does not appear on the ballot. If the race is contested, the candidate who wins more than 50% of the vote is elected. If no candidate receives more than 50%, the top two compete in a runoff in the general election in November.[2]

Elections

See also: California judicial elections

California is one of 43 states that hold elections for judicial positions. To learn more about judicial selection in California, click here.

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]

Election rules

Primary election

Only candidates for the superior courts compete in primary elections.

  • If a superior court judge runs unopposed for re-election, his or her name does not appear on the ballot and he or she is automatically re-elected following the general election.[7][8]
  • Write-in candidates may file to run against an incumbent within 10 days after the filing deadline passes if they are able to secure enough signatures (between 100 and 600, depending on the number of registered voters in the county). In that case, the incumbent would appear on the general election ballot along with an option to vote for a write-in candidate.[8]
  • In contested races, the candidate who receives a majority of all the votes in the primary wins the election. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes in the primary, the top two compete in the November general election.[9]

General election

  • Superior court candidates who advance from the primary election compete in the general election.
  • Superior court incumbents facing competition from write-in candidates appear on the ballot.[8][9]

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. The Superior Court of California, County of Riverside, "Superior Court of Riverside County," accessed June 28, 2014
  2. Los Angeles Times, "Safeguarding California's judicial election process," August 21, 2011
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: California," archived October 2, 2014
  4. Los Angeles Times, "Safeguarding California's judicial election process," August 21, 2011
  5. California Elections Code, "Section 8203," accessed May 21, 2014
  6. California Elections Code, "Section 8140-8150," accessed May 21, 2014
  7. Los Angeles Times, "Safeguarding California's judicial election process," August 21, 2011
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 California Elections Code, "Section 8203," accessed April 22, 2014
  9. 9.0 9.1 California Elections Code, "Section 8140-8150," accessed April 22, 2014