Candice Alcaraz is first Black woman elected as Wyandotte County district court judge
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Kansas 2022 primary election results
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One of the longest tenured judges in Wyandotte County was unseated by his primary challenger in Tuesday’s election.
With 11,796 votes, assistant district attorney Candice Alcaraz won 69% of the votes against Division 16 Judge Wes Griffin, who was elected in 2008. Alcaraz is the first Black woman to be elected district court judge in Wyandotte County.
This was the first time Alcaraz had run for public office and she organized a grassroots campaign, focusing on meeting voters so they could get to know her. She said she thought the vote would be close.
“I’m very excited and happy to have the support that I had in this election,” she said in a phone interview Tuesday night. “I have to be on top of my game from day one. I’m going to live up to the expectations I have for myself.”
Division 12 Judge Tony Martinez was elected in 2019. With 72% of the votes Tuesday, Martinez won against opponent David Patrzykont, an attorney and firefighter in Wyandotte County.
Tuesday’s winner will become the next judges as there are no opposing candidates running in November’s general election.
Six judges ran unopposed in the primary:
This story was originally published August 2, 2022 at 9:44 PM.
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