I think this will mean another race on the ballot this November.
A Republican judge over a state criminal court is stepping down from his Harris County bench for private practice, the elected official said Wednesday.
Aaron Burdette submitted his resignation last week to Gov. Greg Abbott, who initially appointed him to the 486th District Court following its creation in 2023. Abbott is expected to appoint another lawyer to the bench at some point following his May 31 departure.
Burdette described his pending exit as a voluntary resignation from office for a better opportunity for himself and his family.
“It’s been an honor of the lifetime,” Burdette said. “I didn’t want to leave, but sometimes life gets in the way of your life plans.”
Burdette won a four-year term in the court in the 2024 general election.
Judge Burdette will have served a bit less than a year and a half of his four-year term, but if that’s what’s best for him, then good luck and godspeed. My first thought was “does this mean that bench will be on the November ballot now?” And if my interpretation of the Vacancy Filled At General Election law is correct, then the answer is Yes. Which in turn means that we the Democratic precinct chairs will get to pick the nominee, as we have done for a couple of previous suddenly-available judicial slots. The next CEC meeting is June 16, and we’re already scheduled to pick a nominee for the new Harris County Civil Court At Law #5 – there is an incumbent, Judge Jermaine Thomas, who was named by Commissioners Court to fill that bench, but others are allowed to put themselves up for consideration. If I’m correct, I expect to start getting emails from potential candidates. And you can expect your ballot to grow by another race.