Jennifer Branch is running to keep her seat on the Hamilton County Common Pleas Court, General Division, in the Nov. 3 general election. Roger Bouchard, also nonpartisan, is the other candidate in the race.

Branch is a sitting Hamilton County Common Pleas Court judge. Before joining the bench, she spent more than two decades as a civil rights attorney, according to her law firm's website. She represented the plaintiffs in Ohio's marriage equality cases, including Obergefell v. Hodges, the U.S. Supreme Court case that established same-sex marriage as a fundamental right nationwide.

Candidate information

  • Office sought: Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge, General Division (Term Commencing 2/9)
  • Party: Nonpartisan
  • Ballot status: Certified for the ballot, according to BallotReady
  • Education: Bachelor's in politics, New York University (1984); juris doctor, Case Western Reserve University (1987)

Experience and public service

Branch began her legal career at the Legal Aid Society of Cincinnati, where she worked from 1987 to 1997, according to her law firm's website. She then joined Gerhardstein & Branch Co. LPA in 1997 and became a partner in 2005, according to the firm.

There she represented plaintiffs in state and federal court in cases involving discrimination, government misconduct, prisoner civil rights, reproductive rights, election law and what the firm describes as LGBT rights.

Branch said on X that her last argument in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals before taking the bench was on behalf of Gabriel Taye's mother. She said she joined the bench in February 2021 as a newly elected Hamilton County judge.

On the issues

Branch has not returned the Anderson-Mariemont Journal's candidate questionnaire. No official campaign website with policy positions was located during research.

Ahead of taking the bench in 2021, Branch wrote on X that she was "looking forward to joining the bench in February and working to end racial disparities in our legal system as a judge." No current campaign policy statements were available.

Endorsements

Branch has received endorsements from the following, according to BallotReady:

  • AFL-CIO
  • Hamilton County Democratic Party

Editor's note: The Anderson-Mariemont Journal invited Jennifer Branch to complete a candidate questionnaire. No response was received. This profile will be updated if the candidate responds.