Ohio House Speaker, Former Supreme Court Justice, Sees Both Sides Of New Bill

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House Speaker Bob Cupp (R-Bluffton)
Jo Ingles

The leader of the Ohio House isn’t saying where he stands on a bill that would show party identification for certain judicial candidates on the ballot. 

Ohio House Speaker Bob Cupp was an Ohio Supreme Court justice but lost re-election to a Democrat in 2012. A House bill seeks to have the party affiliation of candidates for appellate courts and the Supreme Court listed. What does Cupp think about the legislation? 

“I think there is significant support in the House for doing that. I don’t think it’s without some question as to whether that is the appropriate thing," Cupp says.

Cupp says judges are supposed to be non-partisan, but he notes many voters who cast votes in other races fail to vote in judicial races. Last year Republican former Supreme Court Justice Judi French lost to Democratic former Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner. 

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Contact Jo Ingles at jingles@statehousenews.org.