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General Election

ELECTION WAS NOV 3

New York State Supreme Court13th Judicial District

Civil Court judge and Legal Aid public defender vie for open Staten Island seat

No incumbent is running for this seat. The Democratic nominee, Kelvin Richards, is a Legal Aid Society public defender; the Republican nominee, Michael J. Pinto, has been a Civil Court judge since Jan. 2024.

OverviewRecord
Professional record

2 candidates · experience, selected cases, and evaluations

KR

Kelvin Richards

Legal Aid Society public defender · Admitted to the bar in New Jersey (2012) and New York (2013)

On the Democratic line in this election.

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Professional experience

Public defender with the Legal Aid Society on Staten Island since 2013. Before that he worked in Minnesota as a law clerk and as a certified student prosecutor.

Career & documented work

Bar admission & conduct

Bar admission

Admitted 2013 · William Mitchell College of Law

As listed in a New York Law Journal judicial candidate profile, Sept. 22, 2026 ↗
MP

Michael J. Pinto

Civil Court judge, Staten Island · Admitted to the New York bar in 2013

On the Republican line; selected as the Republican Party's 2026 nominee for this Supreme Court seat.

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Professional experience

New York City Civil Court judge since Jan. 2024, sitting on Staten Island. Before taking the bench he was principal court attorney to a Staten Island Civil Court judge and worked at two law firms.

Career & documented work

Bar admission & conduct

Bar admission

Admitted 2013 · St. John's School of Law

As listed in a New York Law Journal judicial candidate profile, Sept. 22, 2026 ↗
Judicial conduct

No public determination naming Michael J. Pinto in the State Commission on Judicial Conduct's determination database (checked Sept. 29, 2026).

NYS Commission on Judicial Conduct — public determination list ↗