A majority of Berks County Bar Association members support retaining the two county judges who will appear on the November ballot seeking another decade on the bench.

The bar association recently conducted a poll of its 498 members regarding the candidates, each of whom also practices in Berks. A total of 214 of the members submitted responses, according to association Executive Director Kori Walter.

Members were asked whether judges Patrick Barrett and Eleni Dimitriou Geishauser should be retained.

The results:

Barrett

Retained: 201 votes or 95.3% of ballots returned.

Not Retained: 10 votes or 4.7% of ballots returned.

Abstained: 3 votes

Geishauser

Retained: 201 votes or 94.4% of ballots returned.

Not Retained: 12 votes or 5.6% of ballots returned.

Abstained: 1 vote

Walter said the results do not constitute an endorsement by the association of any candidate and that the results of the survey reflect the views of individual members.

The poll was conducted from Oct. 6 through 10.

Barrett and Geishauser were elected to the bench in November 2015 and are standing for retention for the first time.

Barrett has been assigned to the criminal division during his entire 10-year tenure on the bench. He’s administrative head of the criminal division and is in the rotation of judges hearing murder cases. Barrett has also been assigned to the orphans’ court where he presides over cases involving termination of parental rights.

Geishauser was initially assigned to the criminal division and handled all Berks DUI matters as well as DUI Treatment Court. Upon the retirement of Judge James Bucci, she was asked to move to the family division, and handled juvenile delinquency matters. Upon the passing of Judge Paul Yatron in December 2022, Geishauser was asked to return to the criminal division. In addition to the criminal docket, Geishauser is the administrative head of the Berks County Treatment Courts and presides over drug, DUI and mental health treatment courts as well as juvenile delinquency matters.

County judges in Berks receive an annual salary of $229,393.