Gary Starnes celebrates his victory in the race for General Sessions Judge on Thursday, August 2, 2012, in Chattanooga, Tenn.In a clear verdict, voters on Thursday chose attorney Gary Starnes to take the Hamilton County General Sessions bench over the interim judge, David Norton.
Starnes beat Norton with 37 percent of the vote Thursday night, with 126 out of 127 precincts reporting.
“We did very well,” Starnes said as he celebrated with family and supporters at a downtown restaurant Thursday night. “We had the best team that you could possibly put together.”
In legal circles, Norton had long been considered the favorite after the Hamilton County Commission appointed him to fill the vacancy left when Judge Bob Moon died in January.
But Starnes, who owns a private practice, had doggedly drummed up name recognition through ads and events in a relentless campaign that had out-funded Norton by $15,000 — including more than $35,000 from Starnes’ own pocket.