Attorney Nora Anderson won Tuesday’s fiercely fought Manhattan Surrogate primary — besting her two opponents in a race that saw more than one million dollars raised for a job that pays less than $140,000 a year.*

The race was one of four big Democratic judicial primaries in the City, which are tantamount to election, given the party’s local dominance.

The Surrogate race was occasioned by the retirement of Renee R. Roth, who had served since 1983. Surrogates choose legal guardians and fiduciaries to handle a variety of responsibilities involving wills, estates, and adoptions: calculating asset values, selling properties, and settling accounts.

The lucrative assignments have given the court a long-standing reputation for cronyism. And that made claims of reformism front and center in the race.

The final count had Anderson with more than 26,600 votes, nearly 12,000 more than her nearest contender.

A trio of contenders had vied for the spot, each raising a pretty penny. Supreme Court Justice Milton A. Tingling, Jr., was the only jurist in the race, raising more than $109,000 for his campaign.

Adding together the four different campaign finance reports filed with the New York State Board of Elections, Bekerman & Reddy partner John J. Reddy, Jr. raised nearly $601,000 in loans and contributions, Nora Anderson, an attorney at the firm of Seth Rubenstein and former Law Secretary to Supreme Court Justice Albert Williams, raised more than $615,000 in contributions.

In addition to being the Manhattan Democratic Party leadership’s pick for the post, Tingling had endorsements from Gay and Lesbian Independent Democrats and the Chelsea Reform Democratic Club. Traditionally, the party endorsement would equal primary victory, but in recent years, insurgent candidates have shaken up Surrogate races.

In the newspaper endorsement arena, Anderson won The New York Times’s nod, but Tingling scored the New York Daily News’s support — though it was a bit of faint praise that noted, “In a weak field, go with Tingling.”

Candidates have also battled to secure endorsements from local political clubs — support that can bring crucial votes in primaries with light turnouts.

Anderson secured endorsements from the Three Park, Samuel J. Tilden and Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic Clubs, among others. Reddy secured endorsements from the Lenox Hill, East Side and Lexington Democratic Clubs, among others.

MANHATTAN CIVIL

Also in Manhattan, a Civil Court shootout saw Nancy Bannon beating Michael Katz in a much less moneyed race. Bannon led the race with more than 28,000 votes to Katz’s 23,200. Katz is Principal Court Attorney for Supreme Court Justice Barbara R. Kapnick, and Bannon serves in the same capacity for Supreme Court Justice Deborah A. Kaplan.

In that race, the Times endorsed Bannon for her “thoughtful manner and depth of legal experience.” The New York Daily News and the New York Post made no endorsements for this race.

Compared to the Surrogate race, these contenders raised a pittance. According to records on file at the New York State Board of Elections, Katz led the fundraising field with $134,330 in contributions and loans, while Bannon only reported raising $62,635.

BROOKLYN CIVIL

In Brooklyn, the Party leadership’s candidate, Roger B. Adler, was upset by insurgent David P. Cohen, in a campaign that’s costs outpaced the City’s other two Civil Court races. Cohen led the field with more than 3,900 votes versus Adler with 3,700 votes.

Adler, a white collar defense specialist, received the blessing of Kings County Democratic Party Chairman Assemblyman Vito Lopez. Adler once served as attorney for Lopez’s predecessor, Democratic leader Clarence Norman, who was convicted for influence peddling.

Adler also generated reams of angry posts from political bloggers after it was reported that he wrote an amicus brief against gay marriage in New York on behalf of the Conservative Party.

Cohen billed himself as a reformer, winning endorsements from Independent Neighborhood Democrats (the local club of which he was President), Lambda Independent Democrats, and other local political groups.

The race was waged in the First Civil Court District, a Brooklyn political neighborhood that includes Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill. While this is a large, politically active neighborhood, it represents a smaller playing field than the countywide contests in Manhattan and the Bronx (see below).

Counting contributions and loans, Adler’s campaign brought in a total of more than $143,000, while Cohen recorded a total of $95,600. The New York Times and The New York Daily News did not make endorsements in that race.

BRONX CIVIL

In Tuesday’s only other primary race, Supreme Court Law Clerk Elizabeth A.Taylor held a strong lead against Civil Court Law Clerk Maria Matos in the race for a Civil Court seat. Late Tuesday, Taylor had more than 19,200 votes against Matos’s 10,400 votes. A third candidate, private attorney Verena Powell, trailed the field with 5,900.

In that race, as in the Manhattan Surrogate contest, Matos was the Democratic Party’s pick, but insurgencies exposed deep rifts between political leaders. Party boss Jose Rivera, who last year fired election law svengali Stanley Schlein, apparently succumbed to that lawyer’s hand-picked challenger, Taylor.

Despite causing endorsement wars between local politicians, both candidates raised relatively small amounts of cash. Matos reported $43,900 in contributions and loans, Taylor listed $88,000, and Powell had no record on file.

The Times “enthusiastically” endorsed Taylor, calling her the “standout” out of all the New York City judicial candidates.

*Editor's Note: This story was updated on September 9 to reflect newly updated primary results.