Prince George’s County has finished counting all the ballots from this month’s election, with the biggest shake-up coming in the race for Circuit Court judge.
April Ademiluyi took the fifth and final judge post with 206,096 votes, according to results posted Friday on the Prince George’s County Board of Elections website.
Ademiluyi, 39, an attorney who practices real estate and intellectual property, ran independently in her third judicial contest.
Incumbent Michael Jared McCarthy came in last place with 200,918 votes.
“We beat the establishment,” Ademiluyi said Sunday. “I’m not that political establishment judge who has that political agenda to cater to the corporate interest, to cater to profits over people’s lives. I can finally bring fairness to people. I’m ready to get to work.”
The early returns from Election Day on Nov. 3 held steady for the rest of the judicial positions, with defense attorney Gladys Weatherspoon (285,917) and incumbents Wytonja Curry (272,798), ShaRon Grayson Kelsey (272,464) and Cathy Serrette (240,715) taking the top four spots.
Circuit court judges hear major criminal cases that involve a person charged with a felony and major civil cases such as divorce and child support. Appeals in cases from the county’s district court, which handle lower-level offenses, are also heard in circuit court.
Certifying the official results could take until as late as Wednesday, county officials said.
“Thank you for your patience during these unprecedented times,” the elections board said on its website.
Meanwhile, the results of the school board races didn’t change, and Prince George’s voters overwhelmingly approved allowing county officials to issue bonds for the design, construction and acquisition for libraries, public safety, public works, community college and other county buildings.
Even amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the county saw its largest-ever turnout in the general election, with 427,166 of 604,369 registered voters casting ballots.
Nearly 129,000 people cast ballots during the early voting period.