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SANTA ANA — A Superior Court judge was allowed Thursday to withdraw from a November run-off election in Orange County while fighting child pornography and molestation charges. 

Attorneys made the request on behalf of Judge Ronald Kline, saying campaign publicity could hurt the judge’s chance for a fair trial on federal child pornography and state child molestation charges. 

“The election controversy is now over for Judge Kline. We will focus our full attention on the legal defense of the charges,” said attorney Paul S. Meyer. 

Kline, 61, was indicted on federal charges in November after an Internet watchdog group forwarded a tip from a computer hacker to authorities that the judge was downloading child pornography. In January, he was charged by the state with allegedly molesting a teen-ager two decades ago. 

The indictment came days after Kline, who has pleaded innocent to the charges, filed papers seeking re-election. Kline failed in March to win outright election when 11 write-in candidates forced him into a runoff against Dana Point attorney John Adams. 

Days after the primary election, Kline filed to remove his name from the ballot. 

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Yaffe granted Kline’s request despite objections from Orange County’s registrar of voters office, which maintained the judge’s name was already listed on the ballot. 

Yaffe said Kline filed his petition to withdraw before the March vote was certified. 

“The court finds ... that Kline withdrew as a candidate for the general election before he was nominated at the primary election,” Yaffe said in a written ruling. 

Adams, 50, said he was pleased with the ruling.