Judge Rand Wallis faces merit retention on Nov. 3 ballot

St. Johns County voters will decide Nov. 3 whether to retain Judge Frederic Rand Wallis on the Fifth District Court of Appeal.

The retention question is nonpartisan and appears as a yes-or-no vote on the general election ballot. There is no opposing candidate. In a merit retention election, voters decide whether an appellate judge should continue serving. A majority of yes votes keeps the judge on the bench.

Wallis is one of three Fifth DCA judges standing for merit retention on the November 2026 ballot, alongside John M. Harris and Scott D. Makar, according to The Florida Bar News.

Candidate information

Full name: Frederic Rand Wallis

Court: Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal

Hometown: Born and raised in Orlando, fourth-generation Central Floridian, according to Ballotpedia

Education: Bachelor's degree in political science from Furman University, 1989; juris doctor from Stetson University, 1992, according to the court’s official biography

Judicial philosophy: Wallis is a member of the Federalist Society and has been described as a textualist, according to Voting for Justice

Experience and public service

Governor Rick Scott appointed Wallis to the Fifth District Court of Appeal in 2013, according to the Orlando Sentinel. He assumed office May 29, 2013, and has served on the appellate bench since that appointment.

Before joining the Fifth DCA, Wallis served as a circuit judge on the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court. Governor Charlie Crist appointed him to that bench in January 2008, according to Ballotpedia. He served in the civil division in Orange County through 2013.

Earlier in his career, Wallis worked as an assistant state attorney in the 18th Judicial Circuit from 1993 to 1995. He then joined Cameron, Marriott, Walsh, Hodges & Coleman as an associate from 1995 to 1996. He later served as a partner at Cabaniss, Smith, Toole & Wiggins from 2001 to 2008, according to Ballotpedia and BallotReady.