ELECTION CENTRAL 2026 - CIRCUIT COURT .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

ELECTION CENTRAL 2026 – PART TWO

CIRCUIT COURT

Three Circuit Court judges are retiring this cycle. There are 29 incumbent judges running for re-election, and only one has drawn opposition.

GROUP 5 (Judge Angelica Zayas retiring)

Alexander Annunziato (in-house counsel, Ascendant Commercial Insurance)

Arthur McNeil (former Assistant Public Defender, Miami-Dade County)

Annunziato was suspended for 60 days by the Florida Supreme Court, effective August 1, 2019. The suspension stemmed from a May 2018 arrest for attempting to purchase $20 worth of heroin from an undercover detective. See State v. Annunziato, Case No. F18-9913 (Miami-Dade County Circuit Court).

To his credit, Annunziato stipulated to probable cause and agreed to the findings. A Consent Judgment was entered with the Florida Supreme Court. He completed Miami-Dade Drug Court, participated in the Florida Lawyers Assistance Program, underwent 45 days of residential treatment, and continues to attend 12-step meetings. He was represented by attorney Richard Baron.

The Consent Judgment can be found here:

McNeil served as an Assistant Public Defender from 2017 to 2024 and is now in private practice. We noted in our research that his current residence is in Broward County. When asked about his plans if elected, McNeil advised us that he would relocate to Miami-Dade County before taking office in January 2027.

GROUP 35 (Judge Orlando Prescott retiring)

Renee Gordon (Assistant Public Defender, Miami-Dade County)

Cristobal Padron (solo practitioner)

Gordon has been a member of The Florida Bar for 31 years. She previously ran for Circuit Court in 2018 against Vivianne del Rio, losing 53% to 47%.

Padron has been practicing law for 15 years and focuses on family law. He ran for Circuit Court in 2024 against Heloiza Correa, losing 52% to 48%—a margin of approximately 9,300 votes.

GROUP 67

Incumbent Judge Mavel Ruiz

Destiny Goede Alvarez (insurance defense)

This shapes up to be one of the more interesting races.

In 2014, Mavel Ruiz unseated incumbent Judge Fleur Lobree with 54% of the vote. (Lobree later went on to serve on the Third District Court of Appeal.) In 2020, Judge Ruiz defeated challenger Marcia Hansen with 55% of the vote.

Now, she faces Destiny Goede Alvarez, a relatively young but well-connected attorney, just over five years out of law school.

We previously wrote about Goede Alvarez in connection with her applications to the Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) for both Circuit and County Court openings. The JNC nominated her for one of the County Court seats, and her name is currently pending before Governor DeSantis.

Goede Alvarez has been a member of The Florida Bar for just over five years—the minimum qualification for judicial appointment. She earned two degrees from the University of Florida, served as President of Florida Blue Key, and was later inducted into its Hall of Fame. She is also a member of the Federalist Society.

Her experience includes:

• Judicial intern to U.S. Magistrate Judge Amanda Arnold Sansone
• Service in the DeSantis Administration at the Florida Department of Transportation (one year)
• Associate at GrayRobinson (two years)
• Current partner at Goede, DeBoest & Cross (the Goede is John Goede)

THE "NAME GAME" © 2022

We’ve been down this road before.

Time and again, we’ve seen attorneys suddenly “discover” new last names right before applying to the Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) or filing to run for judge. It’s a pattern. And it’s not subtle.

Most recently, we pointed out that sitting United States Attorney Jason Reding Quinones managed to find an extra surname just days before submitting his JNC application.

Now, we have a new entrant into the Name Game.

Enter Destiny Goede… then Destiny Goede Alvarez… and now, simply, Destiny Alvarez.

Let’s walk through this.

Ms. Goede married Nicholas Alvarez on May 6, 2023. Nothing unusual there. And yes—taking a spouse’s last name is perfectly appropriate.

But that’s not what this is about.

Because for the next year and a half, she didn’t take it.

In November 2024—eighteen months after the wedding—she was still “Destiny Goede” when she and her husband signed mortgage documents on a Miami-Dade property. Professionally, she continued using “Goede” at her father’s law firm through at least September 2025.

No rush. No urgency. No “Alvarez.”

Then came January 20, 2026.

The JNC announces four judicial openings—two Circuit, two County.

And suddenly… the clock starts ticking.

Two days later—two days—on January 22, “Destiny Goede” becomes “Destiny Goede Alvarez” with The Florida Bar. Application submitted. Interview secured. And by March 13, she’s on the short list sent to Governor DeSantis for a County Court seat.

Convenient timing.

But wait—it gets better.

On March 26, just thirteen days after making the Governor’s list, she goes back to The Florida Bar and changes her name again.

This time, dropping “Goede” altogether.

Now she’s simply: Destiny Alvarez.

Three names. Three iterations. All within a matter of weeks—right in the middle of the judicial selection process.

Coincidence?

You decide.

But here’s what we do know: for nearly two years after her marriage, she was perfectly content to remain “Goede.” Only when a judicial opportunity appeared did the name begin to… evolve.

Call it what you want.

We call it the Name Game.

GROUP 69 (Judge Richard Hersch retiring)

Rita Baez (Personal Injury Attorney)

Yaneth Del Carmen Baez (Assistant State Attorney)

Bonita Jones-Peabody (Private Practice, former APD)

Baez has been practicing for 30 years, focusing on personal injury law. She ran for County Court in 2024 against incumbent Christopher Green, narrowly losing 50.8% to 49.2%—a difference of 3,145 votes out of approximately 249,500 cast.

Del Carmen Baez has been an attorney for nine years. She works in the Human Trafficking Unit at the Miami-Dade State Attorney's office.

Jones-Peabody has been an attorney for 35 years. She spent 11 years, from 2013-2024, at the Miami-Dade Public Defender's Office. She is now in private practice.

THIRD DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL

Judge Kevin Emas retired on March 31, 2026. The next judge of the Third District Court of Appeal will be appointed by Governor DeSantis from the following nominees:

Jeffrey DeSousa
Judge Javier Enriquez
Judge Spencer Multack
Judge Joseph Perkins
Judge Thomas Rebull
Judge Robert Watson

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