Letters: Registration deadline nearing for Nov. 8 election; choices for Ohio Supreme Court
Are you prepared to cast a ballot?
Tuesday is National Voter Registration Day. We live in a democracy, where citizens have the right and responsibility to make their voices heard by way of the ballot. To keep our democracy alive, we all need to do our part to participate in this process. It is not up to someone else to do it for us. Many feel that change is needed in Ohio, as well as in our nation. The only way to make that happen is to vote. One easy way to get registered is at VoteOhio.gov.
Have you gotten married? Changed your name? Moved within Ohio? Not voted in a long time? You can check VoteOhio.gov to be certain your information is correct and make any needed updates. Don't wait until Election Day to find out. The registration deadline is Oct. 11 for the Nov. 8 general election. Remember, democracy is not a spectator sport. Get ready to vote.
April Secura, president, Northern Portage League of Women Voters; and Deborah Barber, president, Kent League of Women Voters
Get to know Supreme Court candidates
The names of judges are often unknown until too late when their decisions adversely impact us. Given gerrymandering and concern over women's reproductive rights and healthcare, I spent time reviewing judges. We Ohioans can vote for two Supreme Court seats and choose who will lead as the new chief justice this fall. If you believe that Ohio needs change, learn more.
The two trailblazing new candidates, Terri Jamison and Marilyn Zayas, advocate for change. One example is creating a criminal sentencing database across Ohio courts. If elected, Zayas would be the first Latina, and Jamison would be the third Black woman on the high court. Jamison spent her early years as a union coal worker but now brings years of legal expertise at the trial and appellate level and currently serves on the Tenth District Court of Appeals. Zayas, with working-class roots, now sits on the 10th District Court of Appeals and has the experience of being selected by Ohio's Chief Justice to join the Ohio Supreme Court for a justice who was recused.
Then, please consider a vote for Jennifer L. Brunner for chief justice. She was elected to the the court in 2020 and served as Ohio's first woman secretary of state (2006-2010). She was recognized by a bipartisan committee with the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for leadership in election integrity while serving as secretary of state. She brings this same bipartisan work to her role as an associate justice, but let's put her in leadership and choose her as chief justice.
Ruth Ludwick, Kent
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Do your part register to vote, update info before election
