Democratic ex-judge to run for Ohio secretary of state

COLUMBUS -- A former judge became the first Democrat to declare her candidacy for secretary of state next year.
Jennifer Brunner, a former Franklin County common pleas judge, said Thursday she wants to become Ohio's chief elections officer to help prevent situations in Ohio such as the long lines voters faced during last year's presidential election.
Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Dennis L. White said Brunner will make a good statewide candidate.
Brunner, a former legislative counsel and deputy director at the secretary of state's office when it was headed by Sherrod Brown, who's now a U.S. congressman from northeastern Ohio, served as a Franklin County common pleas judge for more than four years. According to her biography, Brunner was elected to an unexpired term in 2000 for judge and was elected to a six-year term in 2002.
She has stepped down from the bench recently to go to a private law practice and begin her campaign for secretary of state.
White says Brunner is the first Democrat to announce a candidacy for secretary of state, but other candidates could emerge.
At least one Republican, state Rep. Jim Trakas of suburban Cleveland, has also declared a candidacy for secretary of state.
Brunner's Columbus event was part of a six-day campaign kickoff that also reached Cleveland, St. Clairsville and the Canfield Fair on Thursday.
Brunner and her husband, Rick Brunner, live in Columbus.