State senator and former municipal court judge likely to face off for Superior Court seat
The next Tri-Citian to don a black robe is likely to be either a Washington state senator or a former Pasco Municipal Court judge.
Sen. Sharon Brown and Dave Petersen were the two top vote-getters for Benton-Franklin Superior Court after initial returns were counted Tuesday in the primary election.
But with more ballots still to be counted, and only a 562-vote gap between second and third place, Franklin County Prosecutor Shawn Sant could come from behind and bump Petersen from the general election.
Six attorneys filed for the bicounty court’s Position 1 seat, which is being vacated by Judge Bruce Spanner. He is retiring after serving three terms on the bench.
Only two candidates advance to the Nov. 3 ballot.
The other six sitting Superior Court judges did not draw any challengers.
The four-year, nonpartisan position comes with a salary just shy of $200,000.
Brown got the most votes Tuesday at 8,194, or 23 percent. Petersen received 7,387 votes, or 21 percent, immediately followed by Sant’s 6,825 votes, or 19 percent.
Rounding out the field were: Bronson Brown, 5,881 votes, 16 percent; Shelley Ajax, 4,255 votes, 12 percent; and Talesha “Tali” Sams, 3,038 votes, 9 percent.
Sharon Brown was admitted to practice law 20 years ago, and has worked as a business attorney on mergers and acquisitions and construction law.
She was on the Kennewick City Council, serving as mayor pro-tem, when she was appointed in 2013 to the Washington Senate for the 8th Legislative District.
She replaced Jerome Delvin following his election to the Benton County Commission.
Brown has since been re-elected twice, most recently in 2018. If elected, she will have to step down from the Legislature.
Petersen served as the Pasco Municipal Court judge from 2011 into 2017.
He has worked as both a deputy prosecutor in Franklin County and in private practice during his 22-year legal career.
He also has done pro bono work with Legal Aid, in addition to participating in the annual National Adoption Day and coaching the mock trial team at Tri-Cities Prep.
The election will be certified Aug. 14.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 9:40 PM.