Pat DeWine
2017 - Present
2029
7
Pat DeWine (Republican Party) is a judge of the Ohio Supreme Court. He assumed office on January 1, 2017. His current term ends on January 1, 2029.
DeWine (Republican Party) ran for re-election for judge of the Ohio Supreme Court. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022.
DeWine was elected to this court on November 8, 2016, for a term that began on January 2, 2017. To read more about judicial selection in Ohio, click here.
In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship, a study examining the partisan affiliation of all state supreme court justices in the country. As part of this study, we assigned each justice a Confidence Score describing our confidence in the degree of partisanship exhibited by the justices' past partisan behavior, before they joined the court.[1] DeWine received a confidence score of Strong Republican.[2] Click here to read more about this study.
Biography
DeWine received his undergraduate degree from Miami University in 1990 and his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1994.[3] DeWine was previously a judge on the Ohio First District Court of Appeals. He was elected to that court in November 2012. Before joining the appellate court, DeWine practiced law with the firm of Keating, Muething & Klekamp in Cincinnati, Ohio, for 13 years. He then served as a judge for the Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas for four years.[3]
Elections
2022
See also: Ohio Supreme Court elections, 2022
General election
General election for Ohio Supreme Court
Incumbent Pat DeWine defeated Marilyn Zayas in the general election for Ohio Supreme Court on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Pat DeWine (R) | 56.3 | 2,306,428 |
 | Marilyn Zayas (D)  | 43.7 | 1,789,384 | |
| Total votes: 4,095,812 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Ohio Supreme Court
Marilyn Zayas advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio Supreme Court on May 3, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Marilyn Zayas | 100.0 | 406,732 |
| Total votes: 406,732 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Ohio Supreme Court
Incumbent Pat DeWine advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio Supreme Court on May 3, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Pat DeWine | 100.0 | 719,162 |
| Total votes: 719,162 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
2016
- See also: Ohio Supreme Court elections, 2016
DeWine ran for the Ohio Supreme Court. He faced Ohio Eleventh District Court of Appeals Judge Cynthia Rice in the general election on November 8, 2016. Incumbent Paul Pfeifer was ineligible for re-election because he reached the mandatory retirement age.[4][5]
Election results
November 8 general election
| Ohio Supreme Court, Pfeifer's Seat, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Pat DeWine |
56.31% | 2,438,641 | |
| Democratic | Cynthia Rice | 43.69% | 1,892,450 | |
| Total Votes (100% reporting) | 4,331,091 | |||
| Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
March 15 primary
| Ohio Supreme Court, Justice Pfiefer's Seat Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Pat DeWine (unopposed) |
100.00% | 1,336,648 | |
| Total Votes | 1,336,648 | |||
| Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
Ohio State Bar Association rating
The Ohio State Bar Association's 25-member Commission on Judicial Candidates rates each supreme court candidate as either "not recommended," "recommended," "highly recommended," or "superior." Below are the ratings each 2016 candidate received.
A candidate who is rated "not recommended" received favorable evaluations from less than 60 percent of the commission members. A rating of "recommended" means that the candidate received favorable evaluations from more than 60 percent of the commission members. Those candidates rated "recommended" are subject to a second poll of the commission members; a vote of more than 70 percent of the commission raises that candidate's rating to "highly recommended." Those so rated are subject to a third poll; a vote of more than 80 percent of the commission will raise a "highly recommended" candidate to a rating of "superior."
| Ohio State Bar Association Ratings, 2016 | |
| Candidate | Rating |
|---|---|
| Cynthia Rice | Highly Recommended |
| Pat DeWine | Not Recommended |
| Source: | Ohio State Bar Association |
Campaign finance
2012
- See also: Ohio judicial elections, 2012
DeWine was elected to the Ohio First District Court of Appeals in 2012. He defeated Bruce Whitman in the general election on November 6, winning 61.01 percent of the vote.[6]
Cincinnati Bar Association judicial candidate ratings
| Excellent | Good | Fair | Poor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Integrity, Character & Objectivity | 36% | 37% | 17% | 9% |
| Legal Experience, Knowledge & Ability | 34% | 37% | 19% | 9% |
| Respect for/courtesy to Litigants, Counsel & Witnesses | 40% | 39% | 13% | 8% |
| Diligence | 45% | 34% | 13% | 8% |
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Pat DeWine did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Analysis
Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship (2020)
Last updated: June 15, 2020
In 2020, Ballotpedia published Ballotpedia Courts: State Partisanship, a study examining the partisan affiliation of all state supreme court justices in the country as of June 15, 2020.
The study presented Confidence Scores that represented our confidence in each justice's degree of partisan affiliation. This was not a measure of where a justice fell on an ideological spectrum, but rather a measure of how much confidence we had that a justice was or had been affiliated with a political party. The scores were based on seven factors, including but not limited to party registration.[8]
The five resulting categories of Confidence Scores were:
- Strong Democrat
- Mild Democrat
- Indeterminate[9]
- Mild Republican
- Strong Republican
This justice's Confidence Score, as well as the factors contributing to that score, is presented below. The information below was current as of June 2020.
Pat
DeWine
Ohio
- Partisan Confidence Score:
Strong Republican - Judicial Selection Method:
Elected - Key Factors:
- Was a registered Republican as of 2020
- Donated over $2,000 to Republican candidates
- Held political office as a Republican
Partisan Profile
Details:
DeWine was a registered Republican as of 2020. He donated $3,665 to Republican candidates. In 2005 he was a candidate in the Republican primary for Ohio's 2nd Congressional district for the House of Representatives. He received $39,839 from the Ohio Republican Party. He was endorsed by the National Federation of Independent Business and the Ohio Chamber of Commerce PAC, both of which endorse Republican candidates more frequently than Democrats. Ohio was a Republican trifecta when he was elected.
State supreme court judicial selection in Ohio
- See also: Judicial selection in Ohio
The seven justices of the Ohio Supreme Court are selected through partisan primaries and partisan general elections. Previously, these judges were selected through partisan primaries and nonpartisan general elections, known as the Michigan method.[10][11][12]
All judges serve six-year terms, after which they are required to run for re-election if they wish to remain on the court.[12]
Qualifications
To serve on the Ohio Supreme Court, a judge must:
- have at least six years in the practice of law;
- be licensed to practice law in the state for at least one year preceding appointment or commencement of the judge's term;
- a judge of a court of record in any jurisdiction in the U.S.; and
- be under the age of 70.[13]
Chief justice
The chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court is chosen by voters at large, serving a full six-year term in that capacity.[12]
Vacancies
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement. The appointee serves until the next general election taking place 40 or more days after the vacancy occurred. If re-elected, the judge serves the remainder of his or her predecessor's unexpired term.[12]
In 2007, Governor Ted Strickland (D) issued an executive order creating a judicial appointment recommendation panel to assist in making new appointments. The panel evaluates applicants and advises the governor, but the governor is not bound to the panel's recommendations.[12] A similar system was established in 1972 under Governor Jack Gilligan (D), but it was abolished by Governor James A. Rhodes (R) three years later.[14]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
Noteworthy cases
Ohio Supreme Court limits Chevron deference (2023)
- See also: Chevron deference
The Ohio Supreme Court on December 29, 2022, ruled against applications of Chevron deference in the state. In TWISM Ents., L.L.C. v. State Bd. of Registration for Professional Engineers & Surveyors, the court found that state courts do not need to defer to state agency interpretations of the law—a deference doctrine known as Chevron deference at the federal level.[15]
Lower courts in TWISM deferred to the Ohio Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors’ interpretation of its engineering certification rules, which denied TWISM Enterprises’ application to provide professional engineering services because the company’s designated licensed engineer was an independent contractor rather than an employee. TWISM Enterprises appealed the decision to the Ohio Supreme Court, arguing that the agency’s interpretation of the governing statute was flawed because the law does not specify that the licensed engineer must be an employee of the business.[15]
Justice Pat DeWine (with Justices Sharon L. Kennedy, Pat Fischer, and Michael P. Donnelly concurring) disagreed with the agency’s interpretation of the statute and argued that the judicial branch has the authority to determine whether the statutory interpretations of state agencies are lawful. DeWine, writing for the court, argued “that it is the role of the judiciary, not administrative agencies, to make the ultimate determination about what the law means. Thus, the judicial branch is never required to defer to an agency's interpretation of the law.” DeWine added that “an agency interpretation is simply one consideration a court may sometimes take into account in rendering the court's own independent judgment as to what the law is.”[15]
Justices Maureen O’Connor, Melody Stewart, and Jennifer Brunner concurred in the judgment only.[15]
See also
External links
|
Candidate Ohio Supreme Court |
Officeholder Ohio Supreme Court |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ We calculated confidence scores by collecting several data points such as party registration, donations, and previous political campaigns.
- ↑ The five possible confidence scores were: Strong Democrat, Mild Democrat, Indeterminate, Mild Republican, and Strong Republican.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbio - ↑ Denise Grant, The Courier, "Ballot set for March primary election," archived February 2, 2016
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted, "2016 Ohio Elections Calendar," archived February 12, 2017
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, "Official Election Results, 11/6/2012: Judge of Court of Appeals," archived January 30, 2015
- ↑ Cincinnati Bar Association, "2012 Judicial Candidate Ratings," archived January 14, 2016
- ↑ The seven factors were party registration, donations made to partisan candidates, donations made to political parties, donations received from political parties or bodies with clear political affiliation, participation in political campaigns, the partisanship of the body responsible for appointing the justice, and state trifecta status when the justice joined the court.
- ↑ An Indeterminate score indicates that there is either not enough information about the justice’s partisan affiliations or that our research found conflicting partisan affiliations.
- ↑ Ohio Secretary of State, “Ohio Candidate Requirement Guide,” accessed December 7, 2021
- ↑ Ohio General Assembly, “(Senate Bill Number 80),” accessed December 7, 2021
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 National Center for State Courts, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Ohio," accessed September 1, 2021
- ↑ Ohio Laws & Administrative Rules, "Section 2503.01 | Composition of supreme court; qualifications for justices.," accessed April 12, 2023
- ↑ University of Cincinnati College of Law, "Judicial Selection in Ohio: History, Recent Developments, and an Analysis of Reform Proposals," September 2003
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Supreme Court of Ohio, "TWISM Ents., L.L.C. v. State Bd. of Registration for Professional Engineers & Surveyors," December 29, 2022
| ||||||||||
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Current |
Chief Justice: Sharon L. Kennedy • Melody Stewart • Michael P. Donnelly (Ohio) • Pat DeWine • Craig Baldwin • Pat Fischer • Jennifer L. Brunner • Joseph Deters | ||
| Former |
Thomas Moyer • Paul Pfeifer • Maureen O'Connor (Ohio) • Terrence O'Donnell (Ohio) • Judith Ann Lanzinger • Robert Cupp • Evelyn Stratton • David Dowd • Maurice Donahue • Mary DeGenaro • Judith French • Florence Ellinwood Allen • John Peck II • Eric Brown (Ohio) • Francis E. Sweeney, Sr. • Alice R. Resnick • Herbert R. Brown • J. Craig Wright • Andrew G. Douglas • James P. Celebrezze • William O'Neill (Ohio) • Yvette McGee Brown • | ||
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio
State courts:
Ohio Supreme Court • Ohio District Courts of Appeal • Ohio Courts of Common Pleas • Ohio County Courts • Ohio Municipal Courts • Ohio Court of Claims
State resources:
Courts in Ohio • Ohio judicial elections • Judicial selection in Ohio
