Voters Retain Incumbents in Overhauled Orleans Criminal Court Races

71,309 voters chose to keep Judge Camille Buras on the bench, a result that mirrors the outcome in the other two contested seats at the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. All three judges who retained their positions on Tuesday defeated their challengers by wide margins following a legislative change that reduced the number of judgeships.

The state legislature and Gov. Jeff Landry enacted a plan earlier this year to cut three judges from the court, effective Jan. 1. This reduction left four incumbent judges competing for only two open seats. Magistrate Judge Juana Lombard also faced a challenge for her position, marking the only race where an outsider contested an incumbent judge.

Lombard defeated challenger Chanel Robinson Debose by a 54 to 46 margin. In the Section D race, Judge Kimya Holmes secured a 58 percent share of the 122,414 votes cast. This victory gave her a 16 point lead over Judge Simone Levine, whose Section A seat was eliminated by the state.

Judge Leon Roche made a strategic decision to abandon his Section I seat and challenge Judge Buras for her Section H position. He bypassed a potential conflict with Section E Judge Rhonda Goode-Douglas, whose section was also eliminated. Roche’s attempt to unseat the court’s most experienced jurist ended in a 58 to 42 loss, with Buras receiving 71,309 of the 122,802 votes.

Outside the criminal court, the civil docket saw minimal turnover. Ten judges, including Ellen Hazeur and Marissa Hutabarat, were re-elected without opposition. In the two contested civil seats, State Rep. Candace Newell won Division L and Stephanie Bridges won Division M, both by 57 to 43 margins.

In Jefferson Parish, Joe McMahon III defeated Marko Marjanovic for the Division F seat in the 24th Judicial District Court. The seat has been occupied by Judge Michael Mentz for 14 years, and his term expires Dec. 31.