Family district courts decide divorces and custody, and also cases where the state asks to take children from their parents over abuse or neglect. Alex Kim, a Republican, has been judge of the 323rd since January 2019 and is running again.
In about 2020, other Tarrant judges stopped sending child welfare (CPS) cases to Kim's court. Fort Worth Weekly said it was widely believed this was over his perceived bias against volunteer child advocates; he denied political motives. Kim says he cut average foster care waits from over 520 days to under 240.
Judges aren't allowed to take sides on these values — it's against judicial ethics rules. The best clue to how a judge thinks is the party they run with.