While most of Southwest Florida’s circuit judges will keep their seats without a challenge, voters will choose between competing candidates in two races for the 20th Judicial Circuit bench.
The 20th Judicial Circuit covers Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee counties.
Judicial candidates are nonpartisan and have several limitations when running for office. They cannot represent themselves as a member of any political party, campaign for a political party, endorse any candidates or contribute to any person or group for its endorsement, according to Florida statute.
And conversely, it is against Florida law for any political party to endorse or support a judicial office candidate.
This matter has been a point of contention and debate throughout history, as voters would need to know about the candidates for which they are voting, but judges are supposed to be impartial and avoid political positioning.
However, what judicial candidates can do to give voters a better understanding of who they are is promote their legal experience and community involvement.
The Florida Bar offers candidates an opportunity to prepare a voluntary statement that provides information about themselves and their backgrounds, which voters can use to learn about the candidates.
Candidates can also establish their own campaign pages with such information, so long as they adhere to the limitations placed upon them by Florida statute.
There are two candidates running in opposition for the Group 19 seat as circuit court judge: James Stewart — who currently holds the seat — and Vera Bergermann.
And running for the Group 27 seat is Amanda Levy-Reis — the incumbent — in opposition to Ryan Kuhl.
Here is a little bit about the candidates:
James Stewart, incumbent candidate for circuit judge Group 19
Stewart brings about two decades of experience to the circuit bench, specifically overseeing civil cases in the Collier County Circuit Court.
His judicial philosophy revolves around treating every person in the same way: with dignity and respect. Stewart “believes that public trust in the justice system is strengthened when the law is applied equally, consistently and without bias.”
Before he was appointed to the judge’s bench by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2025, Stewart served as a deputy chief assistant state attorney for more than 17 years where he he led, trained, managed and mentored other prosecutors.
Stewart has seen and handled thousands of criminal, civil and juvenile delinquency cases, and more than 100 jury trials.
Formerly, Stewart served as a chair of the Twentieth Circuit Grievance Committee “B,” which would evaluate and impose disciplinary action upon lawyers who may or may not have violated professional conduct rules.
Originally, Stewart is from Michigan. He earned his law degree from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston.
Stewart has a wife , Ashli — who is also a Collier County lawyer — and two children.
His involvement in the community includes volunteering for mock trial competitions for local high schools and law school students.
Vera Bergermann, candidate for circuit judge Group 19
If elected, Bergermann would bring nearly 50 years of legal experience to the judge’s bench.
“With decades of experience as both an advocate and a family law mediator, she understands the profound impact judicial decisions have on families, businesses and the broader community,” according to Bergermann’s judicial philosophy.
Bergermann runs her own law firm, Bergermann Law Firm, which she founded in 1996. It specializes in family law, mediation and divorce in the Fort Myers area, and provides services throughout Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Hendry and DeSoto counties.
Bergermann had worked for General Electric and handled disputes involving the company’s imports.
After receiving her law degree from Loyola University in 1980, Bergermann moved to Fort Myers in 1992. She is originally from Michigan.
Bergermann is involved in many organizations, including as president of the Lee County Association for Women Lawyers, president of the Association of Family Law Professionals, and a member of the Florida Bar Grievance Committee.
Amanda Levy-Reis, incumbent candidate for circuit judge Group 27
Levy-Reis was appointed to the court bench by DeSantis in 2025 and she would bring more than 20 years of experience in the legal field if re-elected.
Levy-Reis’s legal career was marked by public service. Just prior to her appointment, she served as a legal aid attorney at Florida Rural Legal Services, Inc., where she represented the underserved in family law cases and recruited attorneys to assist in pro bono cases.
Also having worked as a federal law clerk for the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida and the Eastern District of California, Levy-Reis said that “these experiences strengthened her conviction that a judge’s role is not to create policy but to faithfully interpret the law and uphold the Constitution’s clear boundaries.”
Levy-Reis has also garnered experience in the private sector, where she handled civil and commercial cases in both state and federal courts. She also served as a civil traffic hearing officer in Southwest Florida.
Growing up in Bonita Springs, the incumbent is a lifelong resident of the Southwest Florida region. She was a student in the Lee County School District and graduated from Estero High School.
She received her law degree from the Stetson College of Law.
Levy-Reis’s involvement in the community includes serving as the former president of the Southwest Florida Federal Court Bar Association, a master at the Calusa Inn of Court and a board member for Young Life, which is a Christian ministry that supports youth.
She volunteers at her church and participates in her children’s school activities.
Ryan Kuhl, candidate for circuit judge Group 27
With nearly 30 years in law, Kuhl would bring a wide variety of legal experiences to the bench if elected.
Kuhl has handled cases in criminal prosecution, civil trial litigation, insurance defense, arbitration and mediation, which he said will provide him with “a well-rounded perspective on the justice system and the people it serves.”
Before moving to Southwest Florida in 2003, Kuhl acted as a prosecuting attorney in Arizona. He continued this path after relocating to Fort Myers. This experience allowed Kuhl to obtain extensive courtroom and criminal law experience.
After later becoming a partner in a multi-state law firm, he developed his knowledge in personal injury litigation, insurance defense and arbitration matters.
Since 2012, Kuhl has had his own law firm, Kuhl ADR (Alternate Dispute Resolution), where he specializes in mediation and arbitration.
Mediation and arbitration are forms of dispute resolution that happen outside a courtroom.
Kuhl was certified by by the Florida Supreme Court as a Circuit Court Mediator since 2015.
Tayeba Hussein is a breaking news reporter for The News-Press & Naples Daily News. Reach her at thussein@usatodayco.com.
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This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Behind the bench: Meet the candidates running for judge in SW FL
Reporting by Tayeba Hussein, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Tayeba Hussein, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News | USA TODAY Network
