By admin 
Leon Dixson, the only sitting judge in the Sacramento region to face an election challenger this year, took an early lead over Rocklin Mayor Dave Bass in early returns Tuesday, in a highly unusual race that involved a level of partisan politics rarely seen in the choice of who will sit on the bench in local courts.
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By late Tuesday evening, Dixson had the support of about 60% of voters, while Bass had about 39%. . It is too soon to know which candidate will prevail as final votes are tabulated in coming weeks, but the race could be a window into an increasingly political environment for judicial appointments and elections in California.
“I am thrilled to see these results in the early numbers and want to thank all the people in our community who helped me spread my message of integrity and fairness,” Dixson said.
Election results change throughout election night and in the days that follow as counties continue counting ballots. The Sacramento Bee regularly updates its coverage with the latest vote percentages as results are reported by the various jurisdictions. We use percentages in our stories instead of raw numbers, which can quickly become outdated.
Read more about how The Bee is covering election results.
Bass, a prosecutor in the Sacramento County District Attorney’s office, mounted an aggressive challenge to Dixson, who was appointed to his seat just two years ago by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Bass was represented by a prominent Republican campaign consultant in the non-partisan race. He was backed by Republican politicians including state Sen. Roger Niello (R-Fair Oaks) and Assemblymember Joe Patterson (R-Rocklin). He was also endorsed by the group Crime Victims United, as well as several law enforcement officials and sitting judges.
Dixson endorsed by 80 judges
During the campaign, his supporters criticized decisions by Dixson, including allowing a drunk driver to attend a diversion program and an interim ruling regarding a music teacher later convicted of filming underage girls without permission. Before the man’s conviction, Dixson allowed him to be around groups of children, but not alone with a child, a decision campaign consultant Jen Tierney said the prosecutor on the case agreed with.
Bass’ political consultant, Dave Gilliard, noted in a social media post that Dixson was appointed by Newsom, a Democrat. He referred disparagingly to Dixson, who is one of two Black judges in Placer County, as “Let em Loose Leon.”
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To fight off the challenge, Dixson hired Tierney, a campaign consultant who generally represents Democrats.
Dixson was endorsed by 80 judges including his colleagues on the Placer County Superior Court bench. Before becoming a judge, he worked for Legal Services of California as its supervising attorney, among other positions.
Dixson raised about $160,000 for his race from Jan. 1 through May 15 of this year, and spent about $134,000 during the same period, state records show. Bass raised about $100,000 during that time, and spent about $80,000, records show.
With total expenditures of about $240,000, the race was more expensive than the region’s other contested judgeship, in Yolo County, where the candidates together spent about $197,000, records show.
Yolo County
In Yolo County, Ryan Davis, who currently serves as a Superior Court Commissioner hearing family law cases in Sacramento County, was essentially tied with Diane Ortiz, a Yolo County Deputy District Attorney, in early returns.
Davis spent $93,000 between Jan. 1 and May 16 on his race, while Ortiz spent $104,000, records show.
California’s system that combines appointments and elections for judges is a compromise between two competing legal philosophies. One argues that judges should be appointed for life so they are completely independent and not subject to the volatile forces of public opinion. The other contends that appointments leave judges beholden to politicians, and says voters should have a voice.
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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 9:07 PM.