Brunner seeks Ohio Supreme Court seat in 2026 election

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat who has served on the court since 2021, is on the Nov. 3, 2026, general election ballot for the seat she holds. She faces Republican Colleen T. O'Donnell for the seat designated Term Commencing 1/2.

Brunner's biography appears on the Supreme Court of Ohio's website. She was the Democratic nominee for chief justice in 2022. Hamilton County voters will see this statewide race on their ballots, according to BallotReady election data.

Candidate information

Party: Democratic
Office sought: Ohio Supreme Court Justice (Term Commencing 1/2)
Birthplace: Springfield, Ohio
Education: Bachelor's degree in sociology, Miami University (1978); J.D., Capital University (1983)
Current pursuit: Studying remotely at the University of York in the United Kingdom for a doctorate in sociology, with research centered on the return of artefacts looted during colonial occupations, according to the Erie County Democrats

Experience and public service

Brunner served as Ohio's first female secretary of state from 2007 to 2011, overseeing the first election of President Barack Obama in 2008, according to the Supreme Court of Ohio. That year, she received the bipartisan John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. She is the first of two Ohioans to have received it.

Before that, Brunner served as a Franklin County Common Pleas judge from 2000 to 2005. While on that bench, she founded the county's adult felony drug court in 2004, the Treatment is Essential to Success program, which remains in operation, according to the court's biography.

Her career spans decades. Brunner served as a judge on the Tenth District Ohio Court of Appeals from 2014 to 2021, according to BallotReady. She worked as an attorney at the Ohio Secretary of State's Office from 1983 to 1987, ran a private law practice from 1988 to 2000, and served as a rule of law expert and consultant for USAID and the U.S. State Department from 2011 to 2014. She ran in the 2010 Ohio U.S. Senate Democratic primary and authored a memoir, "Cupcakes and Courage," in 2012.

On the issues

Brunner outlined several priorities on her campaign website:

Access to justice: Brunner said she wants to promote greater access to justice through technology initiatives to keep people safe and make remote participation easier.
Sentencing data: She said she would join initiatives to identify systemic racism in the criminal justice system through the creation of data on sentencing across Ohio.
Bail reform: Brunner said she supports bail reform for greater equality for Ohioans.
Civil rights: She said she wants to make it easier for transgender individuals to access accurate records such as birth certificates.