Bronx residents will head to the polls on June 24, 2025, to vote in a pivotal Democratic primary race that will determine who fills a countywide Civil Court judge seat.
The position, which carries a 10-year term, is vital to the borough’s judicial system, handling housing disputes, small claims, and other civil legal matters which might bring Bronxites in front of the court.
Vying for the seat are Shekera Anessa Algarin and George Santana, both Democrats with decades of legal experience and community advocacy.
Algarin, an attorney with nearly 25 years of experience, has centered her campaign on a track record of public service and a commitment to equity within the justice system. Her campaign is emphasizing her support for equal access to legal representation on her website, something the state has advanced with legislation guaranteeing tenants facing eviction the right to council.
Algarin has secured major endorsements including from the New York City Council Majority Leader Amanda Farías, Zoning and Franchises Subcommittee Chair Kevin C. Riley, and Chair of the Committee of Higher Education Eric Dinowitz. The judicial hopeful is active on social media, promoting campaign events and joining local leaders for outreach events.
Her opponent, Santana, brings prior campaign experience, having previously run for a judgeship in the Manhattan 1st Municipal Court District. While his current campaign has maintained a lower profile, Santana’s re-entry into the judicial race suggests that his former aspirations are still alive.
“I want to be the agent of reform,” Santana said in a campaign video for his 2020 bid for a judicial seat in Manhattan.
In 2019 Santana told New York Carib News that he is the son of a single mother who immigrated from Cuba and that his upbringing gave him a unique understanding of people who have adopted New York as their home.
Santana grew up in Hell’s Kitchen, and served on Manhattan Community Board 4’s Housing, Health & Human Services committee in 2013. With experience as a private landlord/tenant attorney, he has expressed concern over the deregulation of rent stabilized apartments and the amount of affordable housing in the city.
But the potential judgeship wouldn’t be Santana’s first foray into the borough; he was a Court Attorney in the Criminal Court of the City of New York, Bronx County.
With only one seat available and two contenders in the race, voter turnout will be a determining factor in the outcome. Civic leaders and election officials are urging Bronx residents to learn about each candidate and cast their votes in the upcoming primary.
