Superior Court Judge Wayland J. Sermons Jr. is seeking to retain his seat as a Superior Court judge. He filed the required documents by mail this week.

Sermons is the chief Superior Court judge in the Second Judicial District.

“I have been honored to serve the citizens of Beaufort, Martin, Washington, Tyrrell and Hyde counties as Superior Court judge for almost (nine) years now, and wish to continue the improvements we have made in handling cases expeditiously, as well as in a cooperative manner with all the many players in our judicial system. But with issues such as Opioid addiction, new juvenile age limits, court security and new division lines, there is still much to do,” Sermons said in a news release.

Shortly after taking office, Sermons created the Second Judicial District Council, which consists of himself, all five clerks of court in the District, Chief District Court Judge Regina Parker, District Attorney Seth Edwards, Public Defender Tommy Roughton and the president of the Second Judicial District Bar Association. Meeting three to four times a year, the council works to open lines of communication between all parties in the judicial system, and it has achieved great results in reducing disposition times for cases in criminal courts, especially in handling probation violations, according to the news release.

District Court Judge Darrell B. Cayton, a Beaufort County resident, is running for re-election. He filed his candidacy paperwork Monday, according to the N.C. State Board of Elections & Ethics Enforcement. Two of the four District Court judgeships in the Second Judicial District are available this election cycle, Cayton’s seat and Parker’s seat. As of Tuesday, Parker had not filed for re-elections.

On Monday, the opening day of the filing period for judicial candidates, 124 people registered with the N.C. State Board of Elections & Ethics Enforcement.

The election will be Nov. 6.

Sermons, a native of Beaufort County, attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, graduating with a bachelor-of science-degree in business administration. He attended Wake Forest Law School. Prior to being on the bench, he practiced criminal, civil, real estate and municipal law for 29 years in eastern North Carolina. He is married to Penny Gillam Sermons of Bertie County. They live in Washington. They have two children, Elizabeth Aaron of Gainesville, Florida, and Wayland III of Raleigh.