aligned
Summit County, OH ballot

Colleen O'Donnell

Republican

Justice of the Supreme Court (Full term commencing 1-2-2027) · Summit County, Ohio · November 3, 2026

Also on the ballot: Jennifer Brunner (Democratic)

Colleen O'Donnell is a former Franklin County Common Pleas judge and U.S. immigration judge challenging incumbent Democratic Justice Jennifer Brunner. She campaigns as an originalist focused on law and order, citing her record denying asylum claims in Laredo, Texas.

What this office decides

The Ohio Supreme Court is the state's highest court: seven justices elected statewide to six-year terms, listed with party labels since 2022. It has the final word on the Ohio Constitution, which puts it at the center of disputes over redistricting, abortion and other constitutional amendments, school funding, and the wording of statewide ballot issues, and it hears death-penalty appeals.

How this race lines up with you

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Dossier

Researched 2026-09-23 · Claude Code research agent with web search

Donald Trump: nothing found. No search result found Trump endorsing or criticizing O'Donnell; she referenced the Trump administration approvingly in her own campaign announcement ('Law and order are back in style' following 'President Trump's administration'), but this is her statement, not an action by Trump. source

  • Ohio Chamber of Commerce PAC (for) source
  • Ohio Business Roundtable (for) source
  • National Federation of Independent Business-Ohio (for) source
  • Ohio Manufacturers' Association (for) source
  • Ohio Farm Bureau Federation (for) source
  • Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones (campaign committee chairman) (for) source

Who they are

Colleen O'Donnell is a former Franklin County Common Pleas judge (2013-2023) and, most recently, a U.S. immigration judge in Laredo, Texas; she holds no office now (Chronicle-Telegram). She is the Republican challenger to incumbent Justice Jennifer Brunner, who holds this seat (OCJ). She is the daughter of retired Justice Terrence O'Donnell (Ballotpedia) and won a four-candidate primary on May 5, 2026 with about 32% of the vote (OCJ).

Positions

  • Crime & policing: Campaigns on law and order: 'Law and order are back in style' and 'I've seen firsthand the kind of damage lawlessness can do' (Crescent-News).
  • Immigration: Touts denying asylum in every case she heard in Laredo; calls many who appeared before her 'drug traffickers, human smugglers and violent gang members,' and calls herself an originalist favoring 'judicial restraint' (OCJ).
  • Voting rules, Party politics in courts, Personal freedom, Schools: No public position found.

Record

Presided over civil and criminal cases as a Franklin County judge, 2013-2023 (Chronicle-Telegram). On April 21, 2026, an Ohio Court of Appeals panel found she violated ethics rules by letting an endorsement call her 'Judge O'Donnell' though out of office; not sanctioned given the violation's 'technical' nature (Bloomberg Law).

Money

For the period covering mid-April through early June 2026, O'Donnell reported just under $20,000 in contributions and about $73,000 cash on hand, well behind Brunner's roughly $116,000 (OCJ).

Recent news

  • 2026-04-21: Found to have violated judicial ethics rules over a mischaracterized endorsement; not sanctioned (Bloomberg Law).
  • 2026-07-31: Profiled touting originalism and her immigration-court record (OCJ).
  • 2026-08-18: Endorsed by the Ohio Chamber of Commerce PAC and other business groups (WOSU).

What we couldn't find

  • No explicit Trump endorsement; she credits the Trump administration's approach in her own message.
  • Breakdown of largest donors beyond aggregate totals.
  • Statements on voting rules, court partisanship, personal freedom, or schools.
Sources (7)