Many of Clark County’s judicial races will be unopposed; controversial judge bows out

A controversial judge will not be on the ballot for this year’s judicial elections in the Las Vegas Valley, and more than half of the races will feature unopposed candidates.

Friday was the last day for candidates to register to run in a judicial race in Clark County. More than a dozen attorneys filed to run on Friday, with the majority registering in the final hours at the Clark County Government Center.

District Judge Erika Ballou, who is currently suspended from the bench without pay, did not file to retain her seat. But her replacement was all but guaranteed by Friday evening.

Colleen Brown, who has practiced law as a prosecutor under the name Colleen Baharav, filed over a week ago to run for Ballou’s seat in Department 24, and will be unopposed. Ballou did not respond to a request for comment.

On the ballot in November will be 32 District Court departments and 26 Family Court seats, plus two seats on the Nevada Supreme Court. Of those races, 12 races in District Court and seven in Family Court will be contested. Supreme Court justices Kristina Pickering and Douglas Herndon will be running unopposed to retain their seats.

There are also 10 races between the Las Vegas, North Las Vegas and Henderson justice courts and municipal courts, including a new department in Henderson Justice Court. Two incumbents in Las Vegas Justice Court and one incumbent in both the North Las Vegas and Henderson justice courts will run unopposed.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Jake Villani was one of the last attorneys to file on Friday against District Judge Jennifer Schwartz in Department 17. He said he was frustrated at the number of races that were unopposed by the end of the night.

“That’s not an election, that’s a sign-up,” he said.

The last time this many races were on one ballot was in 2020, which saw about 136 judicial candidates run for spots in District Court and valley justice courts. This year there are just under 100 candidates vying for seats in those same courthouses.

Friday may have been less busy because there weren’t as many public defenders who decided to run, said political consultant Tom Letizia, who represented several public defenders elected in 2020. There are also fewer members of that office who currently have the required 10 years of experience to run for District Court, he said.

“I’m running with zero expectations, truly out of an interest and a desire to continue my public service,” said Alexander Hubert, one of the public defenders who did file against an incumbent on Friday. He is challenging District Judge Tara Clark Newberry in Department 21.

Some longtime judges not running again

Another first-time candidate, attorney Emily McFarling, will also be unopposed in the race for Family Court Department H. Family Court Judge Arthur Ritchie currently sits in that department, but is not seeking another term.

Like Ritchie, several other sitting judges told the Las Vegas Review-Journal they will not be seeking another term. Family Court Judge Vincent Ochoa and District Judge Mark Denton both said they plan to serve out their present terms but will not run again. Denton is currently the longest serving judge in District Court, and has been on the bench since 1998.

District Judge Ronald Israel also did not file to retain his seat in Department 28. Israel had one of the lower scores for District Court judges in the Review-Journal’s 2025 Judicial Performance Evaluation, with just over 50 percent of attorneys recommending him for retention. It was unclear why he did not file to retain his seat, and he declined to comment through a District Court spokeswoman.

Israel’s seat will be contested by attorney Danielle Tarmu and current Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Noreen DeMonte. Attorney Alexander Quagge withdrew from the race on Friday to instead oppose District Judge Jacob Reynolds in Department 29.

Quagge said he decided to switch races after seeing both the opponents for Department 28 were women, and he said both are “very qualified.”

Family Court Judge Robert Teuton did not file to run again, and he could not immediately be reached for comment on Friday.

Incumbents facing challengers

Several other incumbent judges with the lowest scores in the Review-Journal’s 2025 Judicial Performance Evaluation will be facing an opponent.

District Judge Joanna Kishner was the only District Court judge besides Ballou to receive a retention score of less than 50 percent in the survey. She is being challenged by attorney Alexandra McLeod, who filed for the election last week.

Family Court Judges Mary Perry and Michele Mercer, who also received low scores, both had opponents file against them on Friday. Attorney Amber Candelaria filed against Mercer, while Perry will face two opponents: attorneys Jennifer Isso and Kurt Smith.

Smith filed to run late Friday afternoon. He wanted to file against Perry because of his experience appearing in her courtroom, Smith said.

“As a judge she has a very shoot-from-the-hip style,” which Smith said is “not conducive” to family law.

Family Court Judge Bill Henderson’s retention score dropped significantly in the 2025 Judicial Performance Evaluation, to just over 50 percent of attorneys recommending that he stay on the bench. He attracted two opponents on Friday: attorneys Nicholas Petsas and Marilyn Caston.

Petsas was previously running in Department S, which is the seat that will be left vacant because Ochoa is not seeking another term. He said that race was crowded with three other opponents, so he switched to the Department R race on Friday.

Caston said she filed for the Department R race because she believes she has more experience practicing family law, and that Henderson “may be done” being a judge after 15 years on the bench. Petsas said he handles family cases, and his website indicates he practices in criminal defense, DUI, traffic and child dependency cases.

Henderson did not respond to a request for comment on Friday evening.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Review-Journal staff writer Akiya Dillon contributed to this report.