Iberville Parish voters have narrowed a three-way race for a vacant judgeship down to two contenders, setting up a Dec. 12 runoff between Victor Woods Jr. and Lori White for the Division C seat on the 18th Judicial District bench. Complete but unofficial returns showed Woods taking 36% of the vote and White taking 33%, edging out third-place finisher Alycia Grace-O'Bear, who collected 31%.
The outcome, reported by WBRZ, means Iberville Parish voters will decide the runoff themselves, even though whoever wins will handle cases across the broader 18th Judicial District, according to wbrindependent.com. All three candidates who qualified for the race in August — Grace-O'Bear, White and Woods — ran as Democrats.
The seat became open after Judge Alvin Batiste Jr. retired in January 2026 following 23 years on the bench, per the same account. That retirement set off a scramble among three attorneys with deep, if differing, roots in the parish's legal system.
Three Attorneys, Three Different Paths to the Bench
Woods, who grew up in Brusly, has practiced law for 34 years as both a prosecutor and a defense attorney, and he served as an assistant district attorney in the 18th Judicial District from 1992 to 2002, the outlet reports. White, who lives in Plaquemine and graduated from Southern University twice, earned her law degree in 2001 and was admitted to practice the following year; she currently works as the victim's assistance coordinator in the 18th Judicial District's District Attorney's Office.
Grace-O'Bear, who is from Sunshine and teaches at the Southern University Law Center, said she has spent about 27 years practicing law. The site notes she served as an assistant district attorney in the 18th Judicial District and also spent roughly 12 years as a state administrative law judge before mounting her own bid for Division C.
A Wide Gap in Campaign Cash
Financial disclosures tell a starkly uneven story heading into the runoff. White's campaign reported about $92,800 in total contributions plus a $20,000 personal loan, with roughly $97,000 spent and $15,706.96 left on hand as of Sept. 24, the outlet's review of her filings shows.
Grace-O'Bear's filing, covering Aug. 4 through Sept. 24, listed $9,200 raised from 21 donors, no loans, and $5,833.05 remaining. Woods had less cash on hand, so Grace-O'Bear did not have the smallest reported balance, though she ultimately finished closest to the runoff cutoff.
White's fundraising also drew scrutiny over its sourcing. Her 2025 annual report listed $29,600 in total contributions, and three donations of $6,000 each — all dated Dec. 12, 2025, and tied to Clayton-related sources — accounted for $18,000 of that total, according to the same filings.
What Comes Next
With Grace-O'Bear eliminated, the race now rests entirely between Woods and White, whose runoff is set for Dec. 12. Iberville Parish voters will make the final call on who replaces Batiste and takes on a docket spanning the full 18th Judicial District.
