Peter Sakai pulls ahead in Democratic runoff for Bexar County judge

Former District Judge Peter Sakai looked poised to seize the Democratic nomination for Bexar County judge in Tuesday night’s primary runoff, pulling ahead early against in-party rival State Rep. Ina Minjarez.

At around 9 p.m., Sakai appeared to be headed to the November ballot with roughly 61.5% of the vote. Minjarez had 38.5% of the votes so far tabulated. 

In the March primary, Sakai garnered 41% of the vote to Minjarez’s 31% in a field of four hopefuls. Because neither Minjarez nor Sakai drew more than 50% of the vote, they both advanced to the runoff.

Sakai, a 67-year-old Rio Grande Valley native, is now likely to be the Democrat who faces Republican Trish DeBerry in the Nov. 8 general election. DeBerry, a former Precinct 3 county commissioner, stepped down from her hard-fought position to run for the county’s top elected office.

In a statement supplied from Sakai at his campaign’s watch party at Tony G’s Soul Food, the former judge said the tragic school shooting in Uvalde had eclipsed the victory.

“Tonight’s gathering was originally meant to celebrate a victory, or weather a loss — but I’m not concerned with that this evening. Today’s tragedy reminds us that leadership only matters when it is met with action,” he said. “We cannot allow our children to live in a world in which their own education poses an existential risk to their lives. Now, we must stand in mourning with our neighbors in Uvalde. You nor I can comprehend the grief they are experiencing. We must remember this confrontation with evil. We must remember the lives, and the children that our community has lost.”

The primary and runoff have been widely watched. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff’s decision to not seek re-election means that, come November, voters will be electing a new county leader for the first time in 21 years.

During his 26 years on the bench, Sakai focused on the principles of restorative justice, creating programs such as a family drug court, early childhood court and a college-bound docket that put foster children in a college pipeline.

In a conversation ahead of the runoff, Sakai told the Current he wanted voters to consider his “wisdom, depth of character, reputation, accomplishment, and proven record” before heading to the polls. 

“I feel we’re gonna prevail in this election because this community is connected to me, and I’m connected to this community in more ways than one,” he told the Current in March.

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This article appears in May 18-31, 2022.