Circuit Judge, 11th Judicial Circuit, Group 69
Circuit judges hear felony criminal cases, major civil suits, family and probate matters. This seat is elected by voters across the 11th Circuit (Miami-Dade). Nonpartisan; a candidate needs a majority, and this contest was not decided in August. Term: 6 years.
How we verified who is on the ballot
Candidate list taken from the Florida Division of Elections, 2026 general election candidate list on 2026-09-18 ; both candidates are marked Qualified, which for a nonpartisan seat means the August vote did not produce a majority winner (or the seat is decided only in November). Positions have not been researched; check the county Supervisor of Elections sample ballot.
Candidates
Report an error ↗Rita Baez
Baez is a personal injury lawyer in private practice in Miami-Dade County. A 2026 Miami-Dade judicial voter guide reports she has about 30 years in practice, including nine years as an assistant state attorney, and has tried roughly 80 civil jury trials. She led the August 18, 2026 primary for 11th Circuit Group 69 wi…
Bonita Jones-Peabody
Jones-Peabody has more than 35 years in practice, spending many years at the Miami-Dade Public Defender's Office, where she was a senior supervising attorney handling serious felony cases and mentoring newer lawyers, before moving into a varied private practice covering criminal, civil, family, juvenile, probate, immi…
Why there are no issue positions here
Judicial candidates in Florida are bound by the Code of Judicial Conduct, which bars them from making statements that commit them on issues likely to come before the court. This guide therefore does not code positions for them and does not score them in the matching tool. Compare them on experience, background and the record below instead.
Other issues the candidates have raised
Priorities each candidate has brought up on their own, beyond the major-issue list above.
Rita Baez
No additional issues found in public statements as of the last data review.
Bonita Jones-Peabody
- Approach to the bench — Jones-Peabody's campaign website says fairness is the cornerstone of her practice, promising equitable treatment under the law for every individual, and describes a legal system that serves every neighborhood.