Pink Rose Society

Ohio Supreme Court

Ohio's court of last resort (founded 1802) — seven justices elected to six-year terms. Currently 6–1 Republican, with Democrat Jennifer Brunner the lone dissenting voice and the only statewide-elected Democrat in Ohio.

Composition heading into 2026

  • Republican (6): Sharon Kennedy (Chief Justice), Pat Fischer, Pat DeWine, Megan Shanahan, Dan Hawkins, Joseph Deters (appointed by Mike DeWine).
  • Democratic (1): Jennifer Brunner.

How it works

  • Selected by partisan primaries and partisan general elections (a 2021 law, SB 80, moved the general from nonpartisan). Six-year terms; justices must be under age 70.
  • Rules on Redistricting (Ohio) and Gerrymandering challenges, Reproductive Rights in Ohio litigation, election law, ballot-initiative disputes, and utility/regulatory and home-rule cases.

Why balance matters

In 2021–22 the court struck down gerrymandered maps 4–3, with a Republican chief justice as the swing vote; her age-limit departure removed that check, and the court has since allowed maps like the 2025 congressional plan. Two seats are contested in the Ohio 2026 Supreme Court Election (Jennifer Brunner vs. Colleen O'Donnell; Dan Hawkins vs. Marilyn Zayas) — win both and the court goes 4–3.

Sources