Henderson judge wins re-election

Two months ago, Henderson Municipal Judge Diana Hampton came within an hour of winning her second six-year term unopposed.

On Tuesday, she made it official with a lopsided victory over Clark County Deputy Public Defender William M. Waters.

According to the complete but unofficial election returns, Hampton captured a little more than 71 percent of the vote to retain her seat in Department 3.

The court handles traffic and other misdemeanor criminal cases in Nevada's second-largest city.

Reached by phone at her home Tuesday night, Hampton said she felt "good and relieved all rolled into one."

The 45-year-old wife of a Henderson police sergeant considers the election results an endorsement of her work on the bench.

"These are obviously people who know how I make decisions in my courtroom and they approve," she said.

Waters entered the race less than an hour before the filing deadline in early February because he thought he could do a better job than Hampton and he wanted voters to have a choice.

The 37-year-old ended up mounting a shoe-leather campaign, speaking at many of the same events and sitting for the same endorsement interviews as his opponent.

But while Hampton put up signs and sent mailers, Waters never did. His campaign expense report showed he raised $200 and spent nothing through March 24.

During that same period, Hampton reported spending more than $13,000 and raising almost $27,000.

Municipal judges in Henderson receive an annual salary of $137,867 plus benefits.

Contact reporter Henry Brean at hbrean@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0350.