By Dawn Scotland
The Truth Reporter
A breakfast rally supporting “Sisters in Law” candidates Judge Terri Jamison, Judge Marilyn Zayas and Justice Jennifer Brunner was hosted Saturday morning, August 20, at LiUNA Local 500 on Nebraska Ave. The trio outlined their platform for the upcoming election to a room full of supporters.
Michael Ashford, chairman of the Lucas County Democratic Party and incumbent candidate for Lucas County Recorder, opened the event and shared its significance. “This year is one of the most important elections we have.” He expressed the purpose of the event hosted by Local 500 and Business Manager David Fleetwood. “The idea is to energize and engage volunteers to turn Ohio back blue,” shared Ashford.
Fleetwood moderated the speeches of the Democratic candidates present. Each candidate shared their platform and rallied the officials, community members, supporters and union members to action. Those present expressed their support of the three judges and urged the drive to get voters to the polls.
State Representative Lisa Sobecki, candidate for County Commissioner, and State Representative Paula Hicks Hudson, candidate for the Ohio Senate, both voiced their support of the three candidates in the election for the Ohio Courts.
“Now is the time to pay attention,” said Hicks-Hudson regarding this year’s race, “Now is the time to use your voice. Now is the time to tell others how important it is to be registered to vote and plan to vote…The power belongs to you,” said Hicks-Hudson. “These ‘Sisters in Law’ will make sure that what we believe in, as working men and women, will be heard at the Supreme Court. This is the election of our lifetime.”
Bob Lynn, with Jobs with Justice, an organization that provides transportation to polling locations, spoke to the group followed by Bernie Quilter, Lucas County Clerk of Courts, and Fleetwood who read the list of dignitaries and candidates present.
The introduction of the ‘Sisters in Law’ candidates was moderated by Vallie Bowman English, Municipal Clerk of Courts and candidate for Lucas County Juvenile Court Judge. The “Sister in Law” candidates endorsed by Local 500 are:
Judge Terri Jamison – Ohio Supreme Court Candidate
Judge Jamison started adult life working as one of a few women in the underground coal mines and later made Columbus her home. She later opened and ran her own insurance agency for over 16 years. Jamison sold her agency and enrolled in the Capital University School of Law and obtained her Juris Doctorate in 2004.
As an attorney, Terri worked in the Franklin County Public Defender’s Office representing indigent clients in the Municipal Court System and served as a Hearing Officer for the Ohio Unemployment Compensation Review Commission. She practiced in the US District Court, Southern District of Ohio. Jamison opened her own law office, practicing criminal, juvenile, domestic relations and probate law at the trial and appellate level and was admitted to practice at the Supreme Court of the United States in 2007. In 2012, she was elected judge of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, Division of Domestic Relations and Juvenile Branch. She was overwhelmingly reelected to the Common Pleas bench in 2018 and then elected to the Tenth District Court of Appeals in 2020. (source: votejudgejamison.com)
Justice Jennifer Brunner—Chief Justice of Supreme Court
Justice Jennifer Brunner is the 162nd Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court. Her current term expires January 1, 2027. She seeks to be Ohio’s 11th Chief Justice, a separate seat on the state’s highest court.
Jennifer Brunner was elected Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court in 2020. Previously she served as a judge of the Tenth District Court of Appeals for six years and the Franklin County Common Pleas Court for nearly five years. As a trial court judge Brunner founded the county’s adult felony drug court, known as the TIES (Treatment is Essential to Success) Program, now in operation for 18 years.
She was elected Ohio’s first woman Secretary of State on November 7, 2006 and held the office for four years. While in that office, she became the first Ohioan to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award from the bipartisan board of the JFK Library and Museum in Boston for her service to Ohio as its first female Secretary of State. She has 17 years of private law practice experience. (source: www.justicebrunner.com.)
Judge Marilyn Zayas—Ohio Supreme Court Candidate
Judge Marilyn Zayas was born in Harlem and grew up in tough New York neighborhoods. She earned a college degree in computer science and made Cincinnati her home when Procter & Gamble hired her as an IT Manager. In 1994, she left P & G to pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer. She graduated from UC College of Law in 1997.
Prior to joining the Court of Appeals, she served the community as an attorney for nearly 20 years. Judge Zayas has worked in a large law firm (Holland & Hart) and for Hamilton County. She has litigated in both state and federal courts and has run her own law practice. She represented clients in the legal areas of Intellectual Property Litigation, Labor & Employment law, Delinquency, Criminal Law, Custody, and Adoptions. She also helped businesses, investors, and individuals navigate the complex immigration system. (source: www.judgemarilynzayas.com)
To learn more or support the three candidates visit www.votejudgejamison.com, www.judgemarilynzayas.com, www.justicebrunner.com.
