Election season in Georgia kicked off on Monday with the start of the candidate qualification period. Judicial races will be decided during the state’s nonpartisan primary election on May 21, and jurists must qualify to run before the qualifying period concludes at noon on March 8.

In addition to those judges seeking reelection, new candidates are vying for vacancies and seats occupied by sitting judges. In Gwinnett County, one such hopeful, Magistrate Judge Regina Matthews, is vying for the vacancy that will be created by Gwinnett County Superior Court Division Five Judge Karen Beyers‘ retirement.