Summit County Probate Court magistrate/judicial attorney Jon A. Oldham defeated Akron Municipal Court Judge Katarina V. Cook by 16 votes.

Summit County Probate Court magistrate/judicial attorney Jon A. Oldham defeated Akron Municipal Court Judge Katarina V. Cook by 16 votes.

Out of the 16 contested municipal court judgeships in Tuesday’s election, one incumbent lost by 16 votes. Jon A. Oldham, a magistrate/judicial attorney in Summit County Probate Court, defeated Akron Municipal Court Judge Katarina V. Cook, who was elected in 2009.

According to final unofficial results from the Summit County Board of Elections, Oldham received 13,708 votes to Judge Cook’s 13,692. Given the margin of victory out of the total number of votes cast, the race likely will be subject to an automatic recount, according to state elections law.

There were 76 other municipal court judgeships up for grabs in the general election, but 61 of the total (79 percent) were uncontested. A handful of them stood out:

• Two Lanzingers will continue to serve on the bench in Ohio, after Judge Joshua W. Lanzinger’s victory in the race to begin a full six-year term in Toledo Municipal Court in January. He is the son of Ohio Supreme Court Justice Judith Ann Lanzinger. Gov. John Kasich appointed Judge Lanzinger to the municipal court on September 11. According to final unofficial results from the Lucas County Board of Elections, Judge Lanzinger received 21,228 votes compared to 17,621 votes for Gretchen S. DeBacker, and 6,087 votes for Kenneth W. Phillips.
• Oakwood Municipal Court claimed the most competitive race in the state with eight candidates vying to replace retiring Judge Robert L. Deddens, who was constitutionally barred from running again because of his age. Margaret M. Quinn won, receiving 724 votes out of 3,174 votes cast, according to final unofficial results from the Montgomery County Board of Elections.
• A seat on the Cleveland Municipal Court for an unexpired term ending January 4, 2018 had six candidates on the ballot. The seat originally became vacant after Judge Michael J. Ryan was elected in November 2012 to the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court. The current seat-holder appointed by the governor was not on the ballot. Edward S. Wade Jr. won, receiving 12,593 votes out of 42,168 votes cast, according to final unofficial results from the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.
• With his election yesterday, Judge Mark E. Repp officially becomes the first judge to preside over the consolidated Tiffin-Fostoria Municipal Court. He was unopposed in Tuesday’s election. The governor signed legislation earlier this year that combined the Tiffin Municipal Court and the Fostoria Municipal Court and outlined the timing of an election. Judge Repp, initially elected to the Tiffin court, has been serving as a visiting judge in Fostoria since July 2012 following the death of Judge Barbara L. Marley.

All judges in Ohio are elected to six-year terms. Elections for municipal court judgeships occur in odd-numbered years, while elections for the Ohio Supreme Court, appeals courts, common pleas courts, and county courts occur in even-numbered years.

Supreme Court staff members assemble the election results from the local county boards of elections for administrative purposes, to communicate with new judges about payroll, benefits, and other information.

View all the municipal court election information, including judgeships on the ballot, who ran, and who won.

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