Joseph Deters’ tenure as attorney in Hamilton County ends after 20 years. This November, the ballot will not include his name for the prosecutor’s office. The recently appointed Ohio Supreme Court member has left a void in the county, leaving the door open to two hopefuls striving for the position. Melissa Powers, the Republican placeholder prosecutor since early 2023, squares off against Democrat Connie Pillich, a former representative of the state.
Complementing the importance of this election is a historic perspective–Hamilton County will see its first female prosecutor being elected. However, what truly garners attention in the political scene is the uphill battle of the Republican candidate hoping to secure victory in the Ohio’s third-largest urban county which is progressively leaning toward the Democrats.
With her experience as a judge and deputy prosecutor, as well as nearly two years in the top job by the time Election Day hits the calendar, Melissa Powers brings a substantial resume to the table. Yet, the recurrently Democrat-leaning Hamilton County poses a tough challenge. This is vividly shown in the all-Democrat Cincinnati City Council members and county commissioners.
The county voters have historically been hesitant to give control of the prosecutor’s office to a Democrat, despite such moves popping up in Ohio’s larger urban counties. If you take a trip down memory lane to 1932, it’s notable that the county’s last Democratic prosecutor was Robert N. Gorman in his final tenure. Running as a Citizens’ ticket candidate, endorsed by the Democratic Party, Gorman later moved on to serve in the Ohio Supreme Court, like Deters did recently.
Now, the eyes of Hamilton County voters are squarely focused on the impending prosecutor’s race. The outcome holds significant weight as this office tends to shape lives and determines the directional tilt of the judiciary toward either redemption or retribution.
To try to predict the outcome, one might turn to the races in Franklin and Cuyahoga counties, the only urban cities larger than Hamilton County. In the turbulent 2020 elections, Franklin County waved goodbye to their long-standing Republican prosecutor, Ron O’Brien.
Facing off against O’Brien was Democratic candidate Gary Tyack, a retired judge who had been bouncing back from a stroke. Despite his health issues, the county’s voters decided it was time for a change, ending O’Brien’s 24-year-long historic journey as Franklin County’s prosecutor.
Further north in Cuyahoga County, incumbent Democrat Michael O’Malley is likely to see a comfortable re-election for his third term as prosecutor. He has the easy task of running unchallenged, securing an effortless win.
Certainly, Melissa Powers is well aware of the arduous path ahead of her in hopes to retain her seat. She recognizes the daunting task ahead, and the campaign fundraising is seeming to echo these sentiments. Yet, the front lines are still calm with financial reports not slated for release until the Halloween night.
Who indeed is Melissa Powers? Describing herself as a shy Catholic and law school graduate, whom addressed career and financial stability in law, she started plying her trade in the same office she’s hoping to represent yet again. She served as assistant prosecutor for nearly a decade, from 1991 to 1998, enforcing law and order in the region.
After her decisions echoed across the courtroom as assistant prosecutor, she was appointed to Hamilton County’s Municipal Court in 2006, where she reigned for a solid decade. Now in the race for the prosecutor’s office, she asserts that her broad experience puts her on a more favorable standing.
Power’s opponent, Connie Pillich, is looking to bring a fresh perspective to the office despite never working as a prosecutor herself. Shaping her career in law around her deep desire to make the world safer, she pocketed her law degree back in 1998. However, her lack of prosecution experience remains an apprehensive matter.
In the years following her graduation, Pillich dove into private practice, and no short while thereafter, she had her own firm standing on its legs. More recently, she leads the Pillich Group, a consultancy firm providing services to nonprofits, educational establishments, and small businesses. Pillich stepped into the political ring in 2008, representing the state for six years.
Roaring into this race, Pillich is conscious of a palpable unease among office staff over the potential repercussions if she takes over. Despite her grand plans to audit convictions, develop an ethics department, and bring in more advanced tech, she has decided to keep the current staff on board.
Drawing from her Air Force days, she imparts the wisdom of her best commanders who did not enforce sweeping changes immediately on their arrival. Instead, they adopted an observational role, engaging with the already stationed personnel to better understand the environment before transplanting their lessons and experiences to enforce necessary changes.
The election outcome hinges on whether residents are willing to hand over power to a Democrat for the first time in nearly a century, or if they prefer to stay with an experienced Republican candidate. Nonetheless, it’s clear that change, one way or another, is afoot in Hamilton County.