Columbus, OH — In case you missed it, a poll released from USA TODAY Network Ohio/Suffolk University shows Ohio Supreme Court races are ‘too close to call.’ Justice Jennifer Brunner, Judge Terri Jamison and Judge Marilyn Zayas are all polling within three points of their Republican opponents. Ohio is one of only four states in the country with the opportunity to flip its state Supreme Court, and the only one that could flip from GOP control to Democratic. That’s especially noteworthy with so much on the line for Ohio in the coming months – from abortion rights to redistricting.
“Ohioans have an opportunity this year to reject the extremism of Republicans on the bench and put the Court back in the hands of justices who believe in the rule of law. For too long, we’ve seen the GOP-led court use the bench to play politics, and it’s time to restore integrity and justice back to the Supreme Court,” said Matt Keyes, spokesperson for the Ohio Democratic Party.
Read more from the Dispatch HERE and below:
Columbus Dispatch: Up for grabs: Poll shows close races for 3 Ohio Supreme Court seats
Laura Bischoff
September 14, 2022
- All three races for the Ohio Supreme Court are too close to call but about one in six voters has yet to make up their minds, a new USA TODAY Network Ohio/Suffolk University poll shows.
- The survey of likely voters showed Justice Sharon Kennedy, a Republican, at 42.2% and Justice Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, at 41.8% in the race for chief justice − well within the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.
- Justices Pat DeWine and Pat Fischer, both Cincinnati Republicans, are facing 1st District Court of Appeals Judge Marilyn Zayas and 10th District Court of Appeals Judge Terri Jamison, respectively. DeWine leads Zayas 43.4% to 41% and Fischer leads Jamison 42.2% to 40.6%, the poll found.
- Brunner, Jamison and Zayas lead among voters who are women, minorities or younger than 35.
- Supreme Court decisions impact how much Ohioans pay in taxes, whether utility companies can add fees to ratepayers’ bills, how insurance and business laws are interpreted, what government records will be available to the public and more. Justices serve six-year terms.
- Ohioans typically pay little attention to state supreme court races and often skip casting votes for judicial candidates. But this year could be different for three reasons:
- Supreme court candidates will have their party affiliations listed on the ballot for the first time.
- Current justices made high-profile redistricting decisions on Ohio legislative and congressional districts that likely voters followed.
- The U.S. Supreme Court overturning Americans’ right to abortion may spike interest in state supreme court races.
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