# Judge of the Superior Court, Office No. 6 — Fresno County Compare records and positions simply between Ashley S. Paulson and 1 more for Judge of the Superior Court, Office No. 6 — Fresno County at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. A countywide seat on the Fresno County Superior Court, the state trial court (6-year term). - Jurisdiction: Fresno County - Election: November 3, 2026 California general election - Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements. - Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/fresno-judge-office-6 - Full ballot: this page covers one race. Every contest on a voter's own ballot, by address, with the same breakdown for each: https://voteorelse.com/ - Sources last retrieved: September 24, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 90 out of 100 (Very strong), across 5 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Ashley S. Paulson** - **Steven R. Ueltzen** A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Ashley S. Paulson led the June 2 primary with 47.1% and Steven R. Ueltzen took 29.5%; a third candidate finished with the remainder. Because no one cleared a majority, the top two meet again on November 3. This is a nonpartisan countywide seat. A Superior Court judge serves a six-year term on California's trial court — the court where criminal cases, family law, probate, small claims and most civil disputes are actually decided. One judge's rulings affect thousands of people a year, and judicial elections draw far less attention than the stakes warrant. Judges may be reappointed or re-elected for decades, so a six-year term is often the start of a much longer tenure. Both candidates are prosecutors, so this is not a contest between prosecution and defense perspectives — it is a choice between two people from the same side of the courtroom. Judicial candidates are limited in what they may say about how they would rule, which is why these races feel information-poor: the ethical rules cause much of that silence, not the candidates. ## Ashley S. Paulson Ashley Paulson has practiced law for 11 years, spending 2015 to 2025 at the Fresno County District Attorney's Office, the last five years as a senior deputy (GV Wire). In 2025 they moved to the Fresno City Attorney's Office, where they now serve as chief assistant city attorney (GV Wire). Judicial ethics rules limit what a candidate can say about how they would rule in future cases. Paulson says, "I will evaluate sentencing based on the totality of the facts and circumstances of each case," and on court operations, "Transparency starts with accessibility. The court serves the public, and the public deserves to know how it works" (GV Wire). Beyond a promise of more court transparency, they offer few specifics, consistent with the ethics rules that limit what any judicial candidate may say about future cases before taking the bench. **Strengths:** 11 years in law, including senior roles at both the District Attorney's Office and the Fresno City Attorney's Office. **Trade-offs:** Judicial ethics rules keep Paulson from saying much about how they would rule, so this profile leans on career background over promises. **Keep in mind:** Judicial ethics rules limit what any candidate may say about future rulings, so weigh career record more than promises here. ## Steven R. Ueltzen Steven Ueltzen has practiced law for 15 years, beginning in civil litigation at McCormick Barstow before joining the Fresno County District Attorney's Office in 2015 (GV Wire). They are now a senior deputy district attorney leading the DUI Vertical Prosecution Unit and has prosecuted vehicular-manslaughter murder cases including People v. Keonhothy and People v. Reese, both ending in convictions (GV Wire). Judicial ethics rules limit what a candidate can say about how they would rule; asked about vehicular-manslaughter sentencing, they said, "I cannot give you meaningful comment" (GV Wire). In December 2024 they sent a holiday card to members of the local legal community, including prosecutors and defense attorneys, showing Ueltzen and their family displaying an obscene gesture. Ueltzen's opponent, Ashley Paulson, said "this position is too important to leave to candidates who fail to live up to the standards and exercise the good judgment we expect from judges," and Ueltzen said, "At the DA's Office, we deal with very serious issues and that picture is meant to be a moment of levity," adding, "I understand why somebody could see it as being out of step" (GV Wire). Beyond their record leading DUI prosecutions, they offer little else, saying ethics rules bar them from giving "meaningful comment" on how they would rule in future cases (GV Wire). **Strengths:** 15 years in law, including leading the DUI Vertical Prosecution Unit and convictions in high-profile vehicular-homicide cases. **Trade-offs:** A 2024 holiday card they sent to the legal community, showing an obscene gesture, drew public criticism from their opponent. **Keep in mind:** Ueltzen says the card was a light moment during serious work. How much that weighs against their prosecution record is a call this profile leaves to you. ## Sources 1. [Fresno County elections office — certified June 2, 2026 primary results](https://www.fresnocountyca.gov/Departments/County-ClerkRegistrar-of-Voters/Elections/Election-Results/2026/RESULTS-FOR-JUNE-2-2026-CONSOLIDATED-STATEWIDE-PRIMARY-ELECTION) 2. [GV Wire — Central Valley election coverage, Assembly District 27](https://gvwire.com/2026/06/03/esmeralda-soria-brian-pacheco-adam-gray-advance-to-november-runoffs/) 3. [NetFile official public agency registry and live county campaign portals — candidate/committee searches run for Fresno (CFRE), Merced (MCO), San Bernardino (SBD), Ventura (VCO), Monterey Elections (MCE), and Placer (PLA), with the registry also checked for Siskiyou and Tuolumne](https://netfile.com/api/public/sites/api/agencies) 4. [GV Wire — What Fresno County Candidates Have to Say About How They Would Judge](https://gvwire.com/2026/04/23/what-fresno-county-candidates-have-to-say-about-how-they-would-judge/) 5. [GV Wire — Fresno Judicial Candidate Flips the Bird in Holiday Card. Fair or Foul?](https://gvwire.com/2026/05/28/fresno-judicial-candidate-flips-the-bird-in-holiday-card-fair-or-foul/) ## The rest of the ballot Judge of the Superior Court, Office No. 6 — Fresno County is one contest among the many a California voter decides on November 3, 2026 — Congress, the Legislature, county, city, and school board races differ by address. Vote or Else builds the full list for any California address and breaks down each contest the way this page does, with no account and without storing the address: https://voteorelse.com/ ## How to cite this page Vote or Else, "Judge of the Superior Court, Office No. 6 — Fresno County — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/fresno-judge-office-6 (sources last retrieved September 24, 2026). Link the canonical page above rather than this Markdown file. Coverage is updated as the race develops, so quote it with its retrieval date.