Jessica Dickinson from the Ohio Fair Courts Alliance is here to tell you why judicial races always matter.
- Cleveland VOTES
- Oct 14
- 3 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
We recently chatted with Jessica Dickinson, the Outreach and Engagement Manager for the Ohio Fair Courts Alliance. During our conversation, Jessica highlighted the importance of judicial elections in shaping justice systems and discussed challenges like low voter turnout, lack of campaign finance transparency, and systemic biases in the courts. Jessica provided practical ways for voters to research judicial candidates and emphasized the critical role judges play in making life-altering decisions, encouraging public engagement in the electoral process.
About the Ohio Fair Courts Alliance.
The Alliance is a partnership between Ohio Voice and Common Cause Ohio focused on civic education and engagement regarding the courts, judicial elections, and criminal justice reform. Their mission is to raise public awareness about the importance of voting in judicial elections and impartial judges and advocate for court reforms, bail reform, police accountability, and the abolition of the death penalty in Ohio. The Alliance's founding members include Ohio Voice, Common Cause Ohio, Dayton NAACP, Greater Cleveland Congregations, and the Ohio Environmental Council, which formed a working group in 2015 to address public ignorance about the court system.
Why many Ohioans don’t vote in judicial races.
Jessica told us that a 2014 study by the Bliss Institute of the University of Akron found low voter turnout for Ohio judicial elections, with three-fifths of registered voters reporting that the most common reason they don’t vote for judges is a lack of knowledge about the candidates. Many Ohioans are unaware of the importance of judicial decisions in their lives and lack access to information about judicial candidates. Jessica also noted that judicial races, particularly municipal court elections (which are on the ballot for Cleveland residents this November), often have uncontested races, leading to voter apathy. Through civic education and engagement efforts, Jessica and her team have discovered that voters are interested in learning more about judges but still struggle to find reliable information. That’s why she aims to fill the judicial knowledge gap through her role as Outreach and Engagement Manager.
The role of judges in our lives.
Jessica’s personal motivation for advocating for judicial reform was sparked by her encounters with wrongfully convicted individuals during law school. She came to realize the critical role judges play in making life-altering decisions and highlighted the importance of judicial elections in shaping justice for communities. Jessica explained that unlike mayors or senators, judges have the power to decide whether someone lives or dies, and their decisions impact various aspects of daily life, from family issues to environmental regulations.
Jessica also highlighted the importance of fair and impartial judges at all levels. She explained how both the Ohio Supreme Court and lower courts impact everyday life, including decisions on utility rates, voting districts, and the death penalty.
“An equitable judicial system as one that treats all citizens with respect, dignity, and fairness, regardless of background, socioeconomic status or race.” --Jessica Dickinson
Current barriers to fair courts.
Jessica said some of the current barriers keeping us from achieving a fair judicial system include systemic biases and inequalities. She also discussed the issues of dark money and lack of campaign finance transparency in judicial elections, highlighting how over $6 million was spent on political ads in the 2024 Ohio Supreme Court election without donor disclosure. She explained that this lack of transparency, combined with judges being able to hear cases involving their campaign contributors without recusal requirements, undermines public confidence in the judicial system. Jessica noted that Ohio has some of the most expensive state supreme court races in the country, with significant funding coming from both local and national billionaires with ideological interests.
How to learn about judicial candidates.
Jessica encouraged people to engage in researching and electing judges who reflect their values, as this is one of the few ways individuals can influence the justice system and fight for fair courts. She provided several ways for people to learn more about judicial candidates, including Google searches, finding the judges on social media, going to their campaign websites, reading endorsements, and looking for local voter guides. You can also see who has contributed to a candidate’s campaign by visiting the Ohio Secretary of State's website. Jessica hopes voters will do their research and not skip voting for judges, as courts significantly impact our lives.
Additional resources
BallotReady [You can use this website to look up candidates and create a sample ballot]
Sample Ballots [You can get prepared to vote in advance by looking at sample ballots that are available at your local board of elections websites. They include all candidates, including those running for judge. Here is an example of a 2025 sample ballot.]
The Marshall Project [They write about the criminal justice system and put out judge guides annually]