HANCOCK COUNTY — His voice was tired, scratchy from the last day of campaigning, but his enthusiasm was high as D.J. Davis began to unwind after winning the Republican primary for a county judge’s seat.
While he wasn’t certain the night would turn out as he hoped, Davis began to think it would be a good one when absentee votes — which were reported first after the polls closed — gave him a lead in the four-way race for judge of Hancock County Superior Court 1.
It turned out to be a great evening for the long-time local attorney who defeated three other candidates on route to winning the Republican nomination. His name will be on the ballot in November; no Democrat has yet been identified to oppose him.
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“I am thrilled to death to be elected by the citizens of Hancock County,” Davis said. “It means so much that your community picks you.”
Davis, who has had an emotional year dealing with the health of one of his children and being a late entry into the race, spent the evening with his family awaiting results. Davis said he couldn’t help but become emotional when he learned the final result.
“I did, I just lost it, thinking about my father and everything,” Davis said.
This was Davis’s second time running for a county judge seat. He also ran, but lost, in 2018 for the Hancock County Circuit Court seat eventually won by Scott Sirk. Davis said he learned a great deal from that defeat and applied those lessons this time around.
“I felt better this time because I had some party support where last time I really didn’t,” Davis said. “The last time I had a lot of public support, but this time I had some Republican Party leadership support.”
His major supporters included state Rep. Bob Cherry, attorney John Apple and a number of local farmers. Endorsement ads featuring Cherry and Apple ran prominently in the Daily Reporter.
Davis’s closest competitor in Tuesday’s race was the incumbent Superior Court 1 judge, Marie Castetter. She finished 564 votes behind.
Davis spent Election Day at the Hancock County Public Library in Greenfield, dressed in a shirt, tie and a “Davis for Judge” polo shirt pulled over both. He said he was overwhelmed seeing the community come out to vote under such unusual circumstances.
“It was really something after the COVID to see all those people waiting in line,” Davis said. “They were conversing and glad to be there and I thought, ‘Wow, we can do this.’”
In the end Davis captured 2,826 votes; Castetter received 2,262 votes. Cody Coombs, the court commissioner, finished in third place with 1,964 votes, while attorney Jessica Lacy came in fourth with 1,297 votes.
Davis took an early lead when absentee ballots were counted and results were posted first. That early cushion grew as more vote centers reported.
“I commend all the candidates, because running is hard,” Davis said. “It’s horrible when you lose something like this. I know what it feels like.”
Castetter, appointed judge in December by Gov. Eric Holcomb after the retirement of Judge Terry Snow, will remain on the bench until Jan. 1, 2021.
Castetter’s future plans beyond then are unclear. She had been the county’s chief deputy prosecutor since 2015 before being appointed by Holcomb to fill the last year of Snow’s term.
“I’m deeply disappointed in the results for myself and my supporters,” Castetter said in a statement sent to the Daily Reporter.
She noted the pandemic limited how candidates were able to campaign, but she thought she conveyed her experience and qualifications to voters as best she could.
“I believe when one door closes another one opens, and I look forward to what is to come,” said Castetter, who, along with Lacy, was trying to become the first woman elected to the bench in the county. “I’m so sorry I could not make it happen.”
Lacy said she will continue growing her law firm while reaching out to county officials to develop better alternative mediation opportunities for area citizens with legal disputes.
“I want there to be greater access for legal services in our county,” Lacy said. “I’ll continue to push that.”
Coombs, the court commissioner who hears cases in the county courts as an auxiliary judge, will continue in the position. He could not be reached for comment.
Davis said he’s looking forward to the general election with the anticipation of moving to the judge’s seat at the first of the new year.
One of the issues Davis discussed during the campaign was creating behavioral or mental health programs for the community, something he said he’s been passionate about since he first became a lawyer in the 1990s.
Davis also said he wants to focus on doing more than having a mental health protocol, which is already in place in the county courts. He also wants to see a whole new behavior health court that would focus on veterans.
“I think people realized my heart was for the community,” Davis said. “I’m doing this for the right reasons.”
