On Friday, March 8, 2024, KSAT reported that a primary runoff election was set for May 28th for the 73rd District Court Judge position in Bexar County, Texas. Two candidates, Ana Laura Ramirez and Elizabeth Martinez, received the most votes in the March Democratic primary but neither reached the threshold of 50% plus one vote needed to avoid a runoff.

Ramirez received 35.49% of the vote, while Martinez earned 42.67% of the ballots cast. A third candidate, Dannick Villaseñor-Hernandez, finished third with 21.84% and did not advance to the runoff. The candidates were vying to fill the vacancy left by Judge David Canales who resigned from his position last month. Governor Greg Abbott had appointed former Bexar County Commissioner Marialyn Barnard to serve the remainder of the year until a permanent judge could be elected.

The primary results came after Martinez, a staff attorney for Bexar County civil district courts had unsuccessfully attempted to remove Ramirez from the original ballot. Martinez filed a complaint with the Bexar County Democratic Party in January citing issues with some of the signatures Ramirez collected to qualify for the ballot. Specifically, Martinez argued that Ramirez claimed to gather 99 signatures on dates when she was actually out of state on a cruise.

While the party chair Monica Ramirez Alcántara denied Martinez’s request to remove Ramirez from the ballot due to missed certification deadlines, Martinez was advised she could sue in civil court to invalidate signatures. Martinez ultimately decided against pursuing litigation, stating she trusted voters to make the choice. For her part, Ramirez maintained the complaint had no legal basis.

Now, with neither candidate earning over 50% of the vote, Ramirez and Martinez are set to face off again in the May primary runoff. Reactions from both camps showed confidence in closing out the race. Martinez asked supporters to keep up the momentum to “put the BEST candidate on that bench.” Meanwhile, Ramirez expressed gratitude to voters and said over 30 years of family law experience made her the right choice for 73rd District Court Judge.

 

 

Source: KSAT