Two top-rated women lawyers are on the ballot for Syracuse City Court Judge in November.
They are Romana Lavalas, the Republican candidate and an Onondaga County prosecutor, and Mary Anne Doherty, the Democratic candidate and top lawyer for the city. In mid-september both won the highest recommendation from the Central New York Women’s Bar Association. The rating of “commended” takes into account each candidates’ legal skills, judicial temperament, analytical skills and impartiality, according to the Women’s Bar Association.
They are competing to fill the position being vacated by Judge Jeffrey Merrill. Merrill has held the judgeship since 1984 and is the city’s last elected Republican. Merrill is retiring Dec. 31, under a state law mandating judges to retire at 70.
The city court judge serves for ten years with a salary of $139,200, which will rise to $145,000 in April.
The election is Nov. 5.
Democrats have a clear advantage in voter enrollment in the city. Of the city’s 70,696 registered voters, the overwhelming majority — 54 percent, or 38,799 — are Democrats. Just 16 percent — or 11,362 voters — identify as Republicans. Voters unaffiliated with a party account for 22 percent — or 15,924 — city voters.
Here are sketches of the two candidates competing for the judgeship:
Romana Lavalas (Republican)
As she sees it, Romana Lavalas has spent 14 years as a prosecutor preparing for the job of a judge.
“Being a judge is my singular aspiration,” said Lavalas. “Some people want to be accountants, some people want to be doctors, some people want to be lawyers. Being a judge has been my goal for as long as I can remember.” She added, “To be a judge, you have to be a lawyer first.”
Lavalas, 39, graduated from the State University of New York in Albany in 1995 with a bachelor’s degree in English literature. She has a law degree from the Syracuse University College of Law.
She works with the Onondaga District Attorney’s office, prosecuting vehicular crimes- from mundane violations like parking tickets to cases of vehicular homicide.
Lavalas ran for City Court Judge in 2011, losing to Democratic incumbents Karen Uplinger and Rory McMahon. Lavalas blamed the strongly Democratic majority in Syracuse. But she downplays political affiliation in a judge’s work.
“You can’t get elected without having a political party affiliation,” she said. “But judges are nonpartisan. We cannot be swayed by any particular politics. Being a Republican doesn’t really affect me, just as it didn’t as a prosecutor.” She added, “It’s still my job to do justice.”
Mary Anne Doherty (Democrat)
Mary Anne Doherty has spent the past 12 years working for the city of Syracuse. Doherty, 52, was a litigator for a decade before being picked by Mayor Stephanie Miner as Syracuse corporation counsel.
For the city, she oversees 12 attorneys who help handle legal issues for the city including 
housing, zoning, contracts, taxes and code enforcement and civil lawsuits.
She took the corporation counsel position as a stepping stone on the way to becoming a City Court Judge, she said.
Doherty graduated from Syracuse University in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts. She has a law degree from Western New England University.
“I’m knowledgeable about the concerns of city residents because I have worked for the city for 12 years,” said Doherty. “I think I’m a unique and good candidate in that I’m aware of concerns for the residents, and I have the requisite temperament to be a judge.”
(Ariel Levin-Waldman is a graduate student in broadcast and digital journalism.)
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