Three days ago, we looked at the Court of Appeals race featuring a whopping 19 candidates, and it’s anyone’s guess who will win. There are three more Appeals Court races on the ballot, though, and they’re much easier to examine and to keep track of the candidates. Let’s take a look at each of them:

Hunter seat
Bob Hunter is retiring. Not to be confused with his colleague, Bob Hunter, running for Supreme Court. This Hunter is a Democrat, so this is a pick-up opportunity for Republicans, even though, like all of these judicial races, the partisan affiliation of the candidates won’t be identified.

But Democrats look favored to retain this seat. They’re supporting Lucy Inman, a Special Superior Court Judge in Wake County. Inman has proven to be a good fundraiser, a necessity in this day and age. Financial reports from July have her with $140,000 cash on hand, compared to Bill Southern’s $6,864. That’s a financial disparity that could prove decisive in these low-turnout, low-information contests. She’s also been endorsed by former Supreme Court chief justices I. Beverly Lake Jr. and Burley Mitchell, and not surprisingly, the Raleigh News & Observer.

Southern, the Republican in the race, is a District Court Judge in Stokes and Surry counties. He’s known as a conservative, is a member of the NRA, and is a fellow of the John Locke Foundation. Southern’s endorsements include the N.C. Trooper Association and the N.C. Fraternal Order of Police.

PPP polled the race last month. Inman had 9% support, Southern had 8%, and 83% had no idea who they were supporting. If Southern wins it’ll be because of a Republican-favored electorate and a substantial influx of outside spending on his behalf.

Stroud seat
Incumbent Donna Stroud, a registered Republican, hasn’t put much effort into her reelection campaign. And the last available data has her with only $912 cash on hand. Fortunately, Stroud isn’t facing a competitive reelection bid – she’s unopposed. This is a race that has been thankfully free of big money and big spending.

Davis seat
Incumbent Judge Mark Davis is seeking reelection, and the last financial records have him with a huge financial advantage over his challenger, Paul Holcombe ($238,172-$15,350). Holcombe is a registered Republican who presides over the 11th Judicial Circuit, serving Johnston, Harnett, and Lee counties. He’s highly rated by the NC Bar Association.

Davis is closely connected to former Governor Bev Perdue. He previously served as her Chief Counsel and she appointed him to this seat on December 31, 2012, which became open when she appointed Judge Cheri Beasley to the Supreme Court. Davis has been endorsed by most of the NC legal establishment, including five former chief justices from both parties. He’s definitely a favorite for reelection, even though a poll by PPP taken in September found him leading by only 1% point (8%-7%, with 85% undecided).

The bottom line? Democrats are on defense in the Court of Appeals races this year, but don’t expect the partisan composition of the Appeals Court to change, at least in these three races. Republicans do have a good chance of pick up the seat of retiring Chief Judge John C. Martin, profiled in the earlier post. But first, their preferred candidate (John Tyson) is going to have to get past a field of 18 other candidates, but they would probably be OK with any Republican winning. And there’s always a chance for a surprise in the open Hunter seat and the Davis seat. Just remember, in North Carolina, judicial races don’t have partisan affiliations on the ballot, so be sure to do your research, or look at your voting guide, before you vote. Then again, if you’re reading this site, you probably know that already …