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Florida voters Retain Justice Muñiz and all 22 appellate judges

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Florida Supreme Court Justice Carlos Muñiz kept his seat on the state’s high court Tuesday when voters approved his retention by 57.69%, a decision backed by nearly 7.4 million ballots cast statewide, the Florida Bar reported in unofficial results compiled from the Secretary of State’s website.

The vote capped a sweeping night for Florida’s judiciary: all 22 district court of appeal judges facing merit retention won their elections, and voters settled three circuit court and three county court runoff races across the state.

According to the Florida Bar, which tallied unofficial results from the Secretary of State for merit retention and circuit court races and from individual supervisors of elections for county contests, Muñiz’s 57.69% yes vote represented clear majority support among the almost 7.4 million Floridians who participated in his retention race.

Muñiz’s Margin Sits Mid-Pack Among Retained Judges

Muñiz’s 57.69% approval placed him in the middle of the pack among the 23 judges retained statewide.

All Five District Courts See Judges Retained

Every district court of appeal judge on the November 3 ballot won retention, though support varied by region. The Second District Court of Appeal recorded the highest approval ratings, with Morris Silberman leading all appellate candidates at 65.6% and Andrea Teves Smith close behind at 65.17%. Judges Drew Atkinson and Daniel H. Sleet also cleared 62% in that district.

The First District Court of Appeal saw four judges retained with support between 57.93% and 60.65%. Joseph Lewis, Jr. led that district with 60.65%, followed by Rachel Nordby at 58.79%, Raymond Treadwell at 58.49%, and Tim Osterhaus at 57.93%.

In the Third District, three judges won retention with margins between 59.38% and 60.93%. Fleur Jeannine Lobree posted 60.93%, Bronwyn Catherine Miller took 60.1%, and Kansas R. Gooden secured 59.38%.

The Fourth District Court of Appeal saw the narrowest margins of any appellate court, with all five judges retained by votes between 54.86% and 58.02%. Mark W. Klingensmith received the lowest yes percentage among all appellate judges at 54.86%, followed by Alan O. Forst at 55.74%, Johnathan D. Lott at 55.83%, Shannon K. Shaw at 57.2%, and Caroline Cahill Shepherd at 58.02%.

The Fifth District Court of Appeal’s two judges, John M. Harris and Scott D. Makar, won retention with 64.24% and 63.32% respectively.

District Judge Yes Vote
First DCA Joseph Lewis, Jr. 60.65%
First DCA Rachel Nordby 58.79%
First DCA Tim Osterhaus 57.93%
First DCA Raymond Treadwell 58.49%
Second DCA Drew Atkinson 62.34%
Second DCA Morris Silberman 65.6%
Second DCA Daniel H. Sleet 62.37%
Second DCA Andrea Teves Smith 65.17%
Third DCA Kansas R. Gooden 59.38%
Third DCA Fleur Jeannine Lobree 60.93%
Third DCA Bronwyn Catherine Miller 60.1%
Fourth DCA Alan O. Forst 55.74%
Fourth DCA Mark W. Klingensmith 54.86%
Fourth DCA Johnathan D. Lott 55.83%
Fourth DCA Shannon K. Shaw 57.2%
Fourth DCA Caroline Cahill Shepherd 58.02%
Fifth DCA John M. Harris 64.24%
Fifth DCA Scott D. Makar 63.32%

Six Lower-Court Runoffs Resolved Across the State

Beyond the appellate bench, voters decided three circuit court races and three county court contests in runoffs. In the Ninth Circuit, Temika Hampton-Johnson won the Group 1 seat with 64.69% of the vote. The 11th Circuit’s Group 69 contest went to Bonita Jones-Peabody, who secured 41.67%, while the 17th Circuit’s Group 52 race was also resolved Tuesday.

Across all retention votes, the yes percentages ranged from 54.86% for Klingensmith to 65.6% for Silberman, with Muñiz’s 57.69% falling near the center of that spectrum among the 23 judges who will remain on the bench.

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