Los Angeles residents will vote on electing five Los Angeles Superior Court judges this November.

Ten candidates will be on the ballot after qualifying during March’s primary election for five open seats: Office No. 39, No. 48, No. 97, No. 135 and No. 137. Elected superior court judges serve for six years and are elected in even-numbered years on a nonpartisan ballot.

Because superior court candidates often do not have large election campaigns, the LA County Bar Association’s Judicial Elections Evaluation Committee evaluates each candidate and gives them a rating, from “not qualified” to “exceptionally well-qualified,” said Diane Birnholz, a lecturer at UCLA School of Law.

“They’re lawyers who want to become a judge, and so they don’t have big campaigns,” Birnholz said. “These ratings are very important because there’s just not a lot of information that the typical voter can get about these potential superior court judges.”

Birnholz added that Senate Bill 235, a reform bill passed in 2017, disallowed those running for Superior Court judge to add details into candidates’ job descriptions on the ballot.

George Turner Jr., a deputy public defender and candidate for Office No. 39 who is rated “qualified” by LACBA, said one of the reasons he decided to run for superior court is because of how mass incarceration laws have changed in the last five years – including in their targeting of people of color.

He added that his desire to become a public defender began when he worked at the office of one as a law student at UCLA. He said his desire to become a public defender pushed him through law school, as he sought to represent the community he grew up with in Inglewood.

Steve Napolitano is an attorney running for Office No. 39 who has served as Manhattan Beach mayor and councilmember and is also rated “qualified” by LACBA. His plans as judge are to treat all those who come to the courtroom with respect and to increase legal aid resources and court accessibility, according to his campaign’s website.

Napolitano did not respond to a request for comment.

Ericka Wiley, a deputy public defender and Office No. 48 candidate, is rated “qualified” by LACBA. Based on her experience at the public defender’s office and expungement clinics, she said she believes prison is not always the answer and underlying circumstances should always be considered.

“Our laws have changed over the last 10 or 15 years to do what I call ‘unhandcuff judges’ and allow them to have a little bit more discretion in making decisions in hard cases … and to give people a chance,” Wiley said.

Renee Rose, a deputy district attorney and candidate for Office No. 48, has focused her legal career on protecting victims of crime and currently serves as deputy-in-charge of the LA District Attorney’s Office Elder Abuse Unit, according to her campaign’s website. Rose is rated “well-qualified” by LACBA.

Sharon Ransom, a deputy district attorney and candidate for Office No. 97, said she sees a need for more diversity on the bench.

“There needs to be more people of color, more women,” she said. “I see how we need people that have life experience and experience in the legal profession to be judges.”

Ransom, rated “well-qualified” by LACBA, added that her time working in mental health courts has shown her why a judge needs to be balanced and have an understanding of why someone is brought through the system.

La Shae Henderson, an adjunct professor at Pepperdine Caruso School of Law, deputy public defender and candidate for Office No. 97 rated as “qualified” by LACBA, said that one of her aims is to uplift minorities who may not be supported.

She added that as a person of color, she hopes to eradicate microaggressions and outdated prejudices that may be held by members of the bench.

Steven Yee Mac, a deputy district attorney and candidate for Office No. 135, is also a UCLA School of Law alumnus and a lieutenant colonel in the army reserve. Mac – who is rated as “well-qualified” by LACBA – focuses his volunteer work on first-generation students and new officers in the army, according to his campaign’s website.

Georgia Huerta, a deputy district attorney and candidate for Office No. 135, said her time at UCLA was the backbone for going to law school, and the skills she learned as an undergraduate allowed her to simultaneously attend law school and work full time as an investigator with the state of California.

Huerta, who is rated “well-qualified” by LACBA, added that judges need to continually educate themselves in order to stay updated with the people and the law.

“Your life experiences, your common sense in conjunction with that, continuing learning causes you to be an effective judge,” Huerta said, “Because you’re not tunnel vision, or you’re not in just some little capsule. You’ve experienced life, you have common sense, but you realize, too, that you must always stay up on the law.”

Luz Herrera, an attorney, law professor and candidate for Office No. 137, created a model for establishing community-based legal services and wants to make courts more effective and increase access to law, according to her campaign’s website. Herrera is rated “qualified” by LACBA.

Tracey Blount, senior deputy county counsel and candidate for Office No. 137, rated “well-qualified” by LACBA, said her 12 years working as trial counsel for my office in dependency court showed her the substantial responsibility a judge has toward the community.

She added that Los Angeles Superior Court is unique, as it has specialized courts to find the best outcome for distinctive cases, such as a drug court and a nonminor dependent court.

Birnholz said in LA, people are more involved in the court system than they might expect, such as from traffic violations to contract disputes.

“It’s really important that the person who is … making important decisions in all these cases that affect so many people in Los Angeles … that they’re serious,” Birnholz said. “That they’re knowledgeable in the law, that they have the right personality to treat people with respect.”