NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A runoff to see who will fill a seat on the Supreme Court of Louisiana has been avoided with one candidate’s decision to leave the race.
Appellate court Judge Terri Love announced Friday that she is dropping out. That leaves state District Judge Piper Griffin as the victor in the election to succeed Justice Bernette Johnson, who is retiring.
Griffin is a state civil court judge in New Orleans. She finished first in Tuesday’s election for a Supreme Court post from a New Orleans-based district.
Love is a judge on the New Orleans-based 4th Circuit Court of Appeal.
“I want to congratulate Judge Griffin and assure the people of Louisiana that I have every confidence that Judge Griffin will be a fine Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court,” Love said in a statement on her campaign committee’s Facebook page.
In a news release, Griffin thanked Love and said she and Love have been friends for over 35 years. “As we participated in forums to discuss our qualifications, I always said that all of the candidates were qualified to hold the position … Each one of us brought a different, but still needed, expertise to the race,” she said.
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