Tuesday, March 10, 2026
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Eight LASC Open Seats to Be on Primary Election Ballot
Nominating Petitions for Two Candidates Accepted at Registrar-Recorder’s Office After Closing Time
By Roger M. Grace, editor
Eight Los Angeles Superior Court open seats will appear on the June 2 primary election ballot—two more than it appeared were contested as of 5 p.m. Friday, the closing time for the Registrar-Recorder’s Office—with one candidate, according to an account. getting his papers in at about 5:40 p.m. on the last day for filing,
Crystal Litz of LP Campaigns is a political consultant representing 11 candidates in judicial races in Los Angeles County this year. As of 5 p.m. Friday, three of them—Deputy District Attorneys Irene M. Lee and Gloria Marin and Glendale Chief Assistant City Attorney Ann M. Maurer—had no competitor for the respective offices for which they had filed, although one other person had taken out nominating papers for each of the seats.
Maurer did go unchallenged and is, therefore, unofficially elected. The results will be certified after the primary.
She could—theoretically, but not realistically—be defeated in the primary through a write-in campaign.
Lee will be in a contest with Deputy District Attorney Angie Christides, and competing with Marin will be Deputy Public Defender Zachary Smith.
Litz recounted on Sunday:
“I was at the registrar’s office most of the day on Friday and into the evening. Although they close at 5 pm, their policy is that if you are in line before 5, they will still see you. The ‘line’ is a desk in the lobby where you check in and are put on a list, then you are allowed upstairs once a clerk is available to help you. They do this, I assume, because there isn’t much room in the actual office and no place to queue up at all.
“So as it passed 5 pm, people were still coming upstairs. I was just watching the drama unfold as I had three clients who could have gone unopposed. First, a ‘runner’ for Angie Christides showed up around 5:20 pm. [Christides] didn’t even bother to come in herself. And then around 5:40 pm, I heard a clerk call out ‘Zachary’ and there he was—very last minute—one of the last but not the last—to file, Zachary Smith.”
She noted:
“We won’t challenge his candidacy or that of Angie Christides as I have seen this procedure at the registrar’s office and I’ve also seen them turn people away who are late, so l trust that it was fair and that he was in line and that her ‘runner’ was as well. Being this late to file does demonstrate disorganization and doesn’t bode well for the type of campaign they will run.”
Of Smith’s late-in-the-day filing, one observer joked that “[m]aybe he hadn’t gathered his 20 signatures” on the nominating petition “before then.”
Lee’s Comment
Lee expressed no rancor over the impression having been created on Friday that she had won election, without opposition, only to learn it wasn’t so. She remarked:
“When I learned that Ms. Christides was also in the race, my reaction was simply that the campaign process was continuing to unfold. Competitive elections are a normal part of our democratic system, and the most important thing is that the voters ultimately have confidence in the outcome.
“From my perspective, this race is about allowing the election process to work as intended and respecting the rules that govern it. My focus remains on conducting myself with professionalism and ensuring that the process is transparent and fair for everyone involved.”
Christides had taken out nominating papers not only for Office No. 14, sought by Lee, but also for Office No. 39, for which Deputy Public Defender Binh Q. Dang had filed—he, too, virtually gaining election as an unopposed candidate..
Christides Explains
Christides said:
“I have been overseas working with one of the nonprofit organizations I support that focuses on empowering underprivileged youth. I just returned to town, which is…why my nomination papers were filed closer to the deadline…
“After careful thought and consultation, I ultimately decided to file for Seat 14. Both Mr. Dang and Ms. Lee are respected colleagues, and this was not an easy decision, as I have great regard for the people I work with. However, after thoughtful consideration of where my experience and background would best serve the bench, I determined that Seat 14 was the appropriate race for me to enter.”
She did not elaborate on why her recent absence from the U.S. had a bearing on the delay in a filing by her agent or how the matter of which office she chose to run in could affect what assignment she would receive if she were elected.
Neither Marin nor Smith had a comment and neither has responded to a request for the government lawyer’s last four office performance evaluations.
Ballot Designations
Some ballot designations proposed by candidates have been changed after examination by election officials. Where changes of disputed designations are not made, expedited writ relief can be sought in the Superior Court.
West Hollywood bankruptcy practitioner Frank Amador, who wanted to be labelled “Attorney/Lawyer”—despite the statutory requirement that either word be used only in conjunction with some “other” pursuit—is now billed as “Attorney at Law.”
Samuel Wolloch Krause, who choose the ballot designation, “Attorney/Temporary Judge”—which contravenes a Court of Appeal opinion limiting use of the word “Judge”—has no description under his name, as of yesterday afternoon.
David Ross wanted the designation, “Deputy Public Defender, County of Los Angeles.” He’s a deputy alternate public defender and the word “Alternate” has been inserted.
Unchanged are the designation of Thanayi Lindsey as “Judge of Administrative California Hearings-Special Education Division” although Elections Code §13107 requires use of the “the actual job title” and no such title exists and that of Anna Slotky Reitano as “Deputy County Counsel, Justice and Safety Divison [sic], County of Los Angeles” despite the lack of statutory authorization for inclusion of a government attorney’s assignment.
David DeJute remains listed as a “Law Professor/Attorney.” He does teach law at USC but his rank in the faculty is not that of “Professor” but “Adjunct Professor.”
Three incumbents—Pat Connolly, Robert Draper, and David Walgren—has each drawn an election challenger.
Unopposed for open seats, in addition to Maurer and Dang, are Deputy District Attorneys Candace J. Henry and Mariela Torres.
A chart showing all judicial candidates in the June 2 primary appears here.
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