» Keller tops challenger in Court of Criminal Appeals race,

Defeating a strong challenger in the Republican primaries, Presiding Judge Sharon Keller will vie for a fifth six-year term on the Court of Criminal Appeals in November.

Keller, who in 1994 became the first woman elected to the state’s highest criminal court, received 52.1 percent of the vote, defeating David Bridges, a Republican with a deep background that includes 20 years on the Dallas-based 5th Court of Appeals and stints as an assistant district attorney and defense lawyer, as well as jobs handling lawyer misconduct cases for the State Bar of Texas.

“I’m obviously glad the race is over and thrilled that I won,” Keller said Wednesday. “I’m going to spend at least one day without thinking about November, though people have been asking me about it already.”

Keller will face Democrat Maria Jackson, a state district judge in Houston, in the November general election.

The GOP race for another seat on the nine-member court will not go to a runoff, as state District Judge Michelle Slaughter of Galveston received 52.8 percent of the primary vote to defeat two candidates with more legal experience. Slaughter, endorsed by socially conservative groups that included Empower Texans and Right to Life, does not have a Democratic opponent in the November election.

A third member of the criminal court, Judge Barbara Hervey, had no primary challenger and will face Democrat Ramona Franklin, a district judge from Houston, in November.

Three Republican incumbents on the Texas Supreme Court — Justices Jeff Brown, John Devine and Jimmy Blacklock — had no primary opponents. Blacklock was appointed to the court by Gov. Greg Abbott to fill the unexpired term of Don Willett, who joined the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in January. Democrats Kathy Cheng, Steven Kirkland and R.K. Sandill also were unopposed in the primary.

3rd Court of Appeals

A four-way Republican primary for a seat on the Austin-based court is headed toward a May 22 runoff election.

Mike Toth, a member of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s executive team, will compete against Donna Davidson, an Austin campaign finance and elections lawyer. Toth received 39 percent of the vote, and Davidson got 31.5 percent. Their nearest challenger, former assistant U.S. attorney Jennifer Freel, received 20 percent.

The eventual GOP winner will face Democrat Gisela Triana, a state district judge in Austin, in the general election.