CINCINNATI — Joseph Deters, Megan Shanahan and Daniel Hawkins have been elected to Ohio Supreme Court seats, giving the bench a 6-1 Republican majority.
Joseph Deters wins
Republican Justice Joseph Deters defeated Democratic Justice Melody Stewart, Decision Desk HQ says.
Deters vacated his own Ohio Supreme Court seat to challenge Stewart.
Deters was appointed to the Ohio Supreme Court in January 2023 by Gov. Mike DeWine. This election was his first time running for a full-seat term.
Deters is also the first Ohio Supreme Court justice in 30 years to serve on the bench without any previous experience as a judge.
The 66-year-old was the longest tenured prosecutor in Hamilton County, holding the position twice from 1992 to 1999 and then again from 2005 to 2023. As prosecutor, Deters helped create the first drug court in Ohio. He also established Hamilton County’s first victim/witness advocate program, began a sex offender unit within the prosecutor’s office and formed a unit focused on violent crimes against women and children, among other things.
In between his two terms as Hamilton County Prosecutor, he also served as Ohio Treasurer for two terms: in 1998 and 2002. He also was Hamilton County’s Clerk of Courts from 1988-1992.
Deters received his bachelor’s and law degree from the University of Cincinnati.
Megan Shanahan wins
Republican judge Megan Shanahan has ousted Democratic Justice Michael Donnelly from his Ohio Supreme Court seat, Decision Desk HQ says.
Shanahan has been a Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas judge since 2015.
As a judge, Shanahan was a strong supporter of the Ohio Constitution amendment that would allow judges to consider public safety while setting bail, which passed as Issue 1 in the 2022 election.
Prior to her time with the Court of Common Pleas, the 49-year-old was first election to the Hamilton County Municipal Court in 2011 and then reelected in 2013. She was also a criminal prosecutor before her time as a judge.
Shanahan went to Kent State University and got her law degree from the University of Cincinnati in 2000.
Daniel Hawkins wins
Republican judge Daniel Hawkins is projected to beat Democratic judge Lisa Forbes for an Ohio Supreme Court seat, Decision Desk HQ says.
Hawkins and Forbes were running for Deters' open seat on the Supreme Court bench. Hawkins will serve the remaining two years left from Deters’ now-empty seat.
Hawkins is currently a Franklin County Court of Common Pleas judge since 2018.
Prior to his time with the Court of Common Pleas, the 48-year-old was appointed and then elected to the Franklin County Municipal Court. He has also been an assistant prosecuting attorney and the director of the Special Victims Unit for the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office.
Hawkins is a Bowling Green State University graduate and received his law degree from the Ohio State University.
Find the latest general election results from Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana here.
