Ohio Supreme Court races

We're splitting the ticket in this year's races for the Ohio Supreme Court, endorsing two of the three Republicans who are being promoted as a ticket -- you've seen the Moyer-Lanzinger-O'Donnell signs -- and one Democrat, the one who has shown himself to be something of a maverick.
Four of the court's seven seats are on the November ballot, but Paul E. Pfeifer, a Republican with a strongly independent track record, is unopposed. He merits a complimentary vote in recognition of two terms of distinguished service.
Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer of suburban Columbus, a Republican seeking a fourth six-year term, is being challenged by C. Ellen Connally, a Democrat and former Cleveland Municipal Court judge. While we were disappointed with Moyer's inability to bring DeRolph v. State of Ohio, the school funding case, to a proper denouement, Moyer is clearly the stronger candidate.
The seat from which Justice Francis E. Sweeney is retiring is being sought by Judith Ann Lanzinger, a Republican who sits on the 6th District Court of Appeals in Toledo, and Nancy A. Fuerst, a Democrat and Cuyahoga County common pleas judge.
The final race pits Justice Terrence O'Donnell, a Republican from suburban Cleveland who was appointed to the court in May 2003 against Democratic challenger William O'Neill, a judge on the 11th District Court of Appeals, which is based in Warren.
The justices who are in safe seats this election are Republicans Evelyn Stratton and Maureen O'Connor and Democrat Alice Resnick.
Joining the party
It should be pointed out that most judicial candidates pretend that party labels don't matter -- which is arguably true only in Pfeifer's case. Most of the others maintain the fiction that this is a nonpartisan race, though they all ran in party primaries.
Only one of the candidates, O'Neill, not only dared to question the nonpartisan pretense, he challenged it in federal court and won a ruling that judicial candidates could advertise party affiliation.
We endorse Moyer because we believe his experience qualifies him far above his challenger and because we believe the court needs a steady hand.
Lanzinger, again, gets our endorsement based on her experience and because we believe that the court had in years past read more into the law than was there, especially in matters of insurance and tort law. Some corrections have been made, and we believe Lanzinger is more inclined to stay that steady course than her opponent.
O'Donnell has solid qualifications and experience for the job, including a year and a half on the Supreme Court. But his challenger, O'Neill, also has a strong legal background, which includes eight years on the appeals court and 12 years as an assistant attorney general. In addition he is a retired Army lieutenant colonel and is a registered nurse, who even now works on-call weekends in a pediatric emergency room.
We anticipate that the court will continue to remain firmly in Republican hands, but believe that O'Neill has the background and inclination to provide a strong dissenting voice when one is needed.
Our endorsements in the three races go to Moyer, Lanzinger and O'Neill.