Candace Crouse
2019 - Present
2031
6
Candace Crouse (Democratic Party) is a judge of the Ohio First District Court of Appeals. She assumed office on February 11, 2019. Her current term ends on February 10, 2031.
Crouse (Democratic Party) ran for re-election for judge of the Ohio First District Court of Appeals. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Crouse completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Candace Crouse earned a bachelor's degree from West Virginia University in 1997 and a law degree from The Ohio State University in 2000.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2024
General election
General election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Candace Crouse defeated M. Elizabeth Polston in the general election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Candace Crouse (D)  | 56.0 | 216,924 |
| M. Elizabeth Polston (R) | 44.0 | 170,177 | ||
| Total votes: 387,101 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Candace Crouse advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Candace Crouse | 100.0 | 28,483 |
| Total votes: 28,483 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
M. Elizabeth Polston advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | M. Elizabeth Polston | 100.0 | 32,545 | |
| Total votes: 32,545 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Crouse in this election.
2018
General election
General election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Candace Crouse defeated incumbent Dennis Deters in the general election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Candace Crouse (D) | 53.3 | 159,122 |
 | Dennis Deters (R) | 46.7 | 139,570 | |
| Total votes: 298,692 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Candace Crouse advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on May 8, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Candace Crouse | 100.0 | 31,293 |
| Total votes: 31,293 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Dennis Deters advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on May 8, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Dennis Deters | 100.0 | 29,474 |
| Total votes: 29,474 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Selection method
The judges of the Ohio District Courts of Appeals are selected through partisan primary elections followed by nonpartisan general elections.[2] Courts of appeals candidates are chosen in their respective appellate districts.[2] In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement. The appointee serves until the next general election taking place 40 or more days after the vacancy occurred. If re-elected, the judge serves the remainder of his or her predecessor's unexpired term.[2] In 2007, Governor Ted Strickland issued an executive order creating a judicial appointment recommendation panel to assist in making new appointments. The panel evaluates applicants and advises the governor, but the governor is not bound to the panel's recommendations.[2]
Qualifications
To serve on the court, a judge must be:
- a district resident;
- at least six years in the practice of law; and
- under the age of 70.[2]
Selection of the chief judge
The chief judge of the Ohio District Courts of Appeal is chosen by peer vote and serves for one year.[2]
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Candace Crouse completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Crouse's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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For the last five years before I took the bench, I owned my own law firm, with 4 law partners. I understand what it is like to be a small business owner.
In addition to my job as a judge, I volunteer many hours every month as a Commissioner on the Ohio Board of Professional Conduct, which hears disciplinary cases that are filed against lawyers and judges. I am also on the Ohio Jury Instruction Committee, which drafts model jury instructions for trial courts. For many years, I have taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Law. I regularly give Continuing Legal Education lectures to lawyers and judges across the state.
I grew up in West Virginia, but I made Cincinnati my home in 2002. I absolutely love it here!
In my free time I enjoy running, biking, yoga, and walking my Boston Terrier, Mollie. I live in Glendale with my partner, Tom, who is a Federal Public Defender.- I delivered on my 2018 campaign promises of bringing efficiency, transparency, and fairness to the Court of Appeals. Since taking the bench, my colleagues and I have made significant improvements to how the Court serves the public. We have eliminated our case backlog, changed procedures so that cases get through the appellate process more quickly, installed cameras in the courtroom so the public can watch the proceedings, modernized our case-management system, upgraded our computer technology, added a mediation program, and created a summer internship program for law and undergraduate students. In addition, we make sure we hand down detailed and well-reasoned opinions setting forth our decisions. I am so proud of the work that we have done.
- I am running for reelection to continue the important work of ensuring that the First District Court of Appeals is constantly improving and effectively serving the people of Hamilton County.
- Judges matter! When I started campaigning in 2018, many very politically educated people told me that they often would not vote for judges because they did not know who the people were or how to research them. I have made it my mission to educate people about how the ohio judicial system works and the importance of voting for judges. When any litigation lawyer hears the name of a judge, they immediately know if their client is going to receive a fair shake. I appeared in front of a lot of different judges throughout my career. I ran for judge because I did not think there were enough good judges on the bench that were there for the right reasons - to serve the public rather than themselves. Judges affect peoples lives on a daily basis.
Professionalism and Temperament: 77% excellent
Legal Experience: 65% excellent.
Integrity/Impartiality/Objectivity: 72% excellent
Community Engagement: 55% excellent
Communication Skills: 70% excellent
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2018
Ballotpedia survey responses
- See also: Ballotpedia's candidate surveys
Candace Crouse participated in Ballotpedia's candidate survey on April 10, 2018. The survey questions appear in bold, and Candace Crouse's responses follow below.[3]
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
| “ | 1) To make the court more transparent. 2) To modify restrictive rules that the court has placed on page limits and reply briefs. |
” |
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about? Why?
| “ | Criminal Justice Reform is extremely important to me because I have spent a large part of my career on criminal justice issues. It is important to have qualified, fair, and independent judges on the bench to ensure that the system treats everyone equally no matter their race or economic situation.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many[5]
|
” |
Ballotpedia also asked the candidate a series of optional questions. Candace Crouse answered the following:
What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?
| “ | I will be a good judge because I am a thoughtful listener. I am not a natural born advocate. I don't like to jump to conclusions and I need to conduct thorough research before I make a decision. I started my career as a federal law clerk and I really enjoyed that position. I enjoyed listening to both sides of the issues, doing to research, discussing the cases with my judge and my fellow law clerk, and working with my judge to come to the most fair and just decision that we could. When I got my first job as an advocate, I had to LEARN how to advocate! My first boss told me that I wrote like a judge. That I was not persuasive. That I was too neutral in my writing. He said you are representing clients now and you need to convince the judge that your side is the right side. And while most people know me to advocate quite hard for my clients, I promise that I do always see both sides of an issue. I frankly don't think you can be a quality advocate unless you do.[5] | ” |
| “ | The First District Court of Appeals is the highest court in Hamilton County and it should have extremely qualified judges who are hardworking and prepared for every case. A lot of work is required in order to do this job well. In addition, it is important for the community to understand what the court does. In order to make that happen, the judges on the court need to reach out to the community to educate them on the role of the court and our legal system in general.[5] | ” |
| “ | I want people to remember me as a fair, hardworking, and compassionate judge.[5] | ” |
| “ | I remember the space shuttle Challenger disaster. I was 10 years old.[5] | ” |
| “ | I worked for my parents when they owned a restaurant. I was on the payroll for a summer. I remember how excited I was to get my first paycheck. When I opened it up, I thought my father had cheated me. That's when I learned about taxes.[5] | ” |
| “ | Thanksgiving. Because it is all about good food, family and friends.[5] | ” |
| “ | My Boston Terrier, Mollie.[5] | ” |
| “ | Justice Sonia Sotomayor.[5] | ” |
| “ | Yes. I do not think you can be a good judge and arrive at a just outcome unless you have a certain level of empathy and compassion for all of the participants in a case.[5] | ” |
| “ | I am running for a seat on Ohio's First District Court of Appeals because I believe that our courts can strive to better serve the people of Hamilton County. My years of practice have made clear to me how the system works and what often happens when it fails. It is my goal to make the First District the gold standard for how an appellate court can operate and serve those in Hamilton County. My time clerking for a federal judge shaped my outlook on law and how justice should be done. If elected, I will model my approach to law after his approach: diligent preparation, courteous handling of cases, and purposeful impartiality. It is my goal to make the First District Court of Appeals a more receptive, transparent, and informative court. No matter how large or small the matter is, every case coming before the court is seen as the most critical case in the eyes of the parties involved. I will work hard to ensure that the court is seen as fair and attentive to the litigants who appear before it. I will do this by working to modify restrictive rules that the current First District Court has placed upon itself. Unlike other appellate courts in Ohio, the First District places unrealistic page limits on the briefs filed by the parties and often does not permit reply briefs. Historically, the Court has been known for issuing short judgment entries in lieu of full opinions explaining why the court ruled as it did. As a result, litigants can be left unsure of why they lost their case and end up feeling like they have not had an opportunity to be heard. Public trust in our courts is vital to democracy. People coming before the courts expect a fair, just, impartial process where everyone is seen as equal. I am running to ensure that our local courts and judicial system live up to the high expectations people place on them. If elected, I will make sure our court prioritizes impartiality, diligent preparation, and thoughtful, compassionate decisions.[5] | ” |
| “ | I have never been a judge, but I have worked for judges. I spent the first two years of my legal career (2000-2002) as a law clerk to the Honorable Frederick P. Stamp, Jr., U.S. District Court Judge for the Northern District of West Virginia. During my two-year clerkship, Judge Stamp sat by designation on the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, giving me the opportunity to experience judicial decision-making at the appellate level in addition to the district court level. I managed half of Judge Stamp's docket and wrote all of his civil and criminal opinions for half of his docket.[5] | ” |
| “ | Not necessarily. Judges must be fair and impartial and should not be politicians. Unfortunately, we are elected in Ohio, so we have to campaign. I do believe a judge should have a good foundation as a litigator before taking the bench.[5] | ” |
| “ | I am concerned that we do not have enough qualified judges on the bench. Because you have to basically become a politician if you want to be a judge, many qualified candidates choose not to run. Others don't get elected because they were not good at campaigning or raising money.[5] | ” |
| “ | I am hopeful that the State of Ohio can work on sentencing reform. I do not have much hope that anything will be done at the national level in the near future.[5] | ” |
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate Ohio First District Court of Appeals |
Officeholder Ohio First District Court of Appeals |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 7, 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Ohio," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ Note: The candidate's answers have been reproduced here verbatim without edits or corrections by Ballotpedia.
- ↑ Ballotpedia's candidate survey, "Candace Crouse's responses," April 10, 2018
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 5.15 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Ohio First District Court of Appeals 2019-Present |
Succeeded by - |
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio
State courts:
Ohio Supreme Court • Ohio District Courts of Appeal • Ohio Courts of Common Pleas • Ohio County Courts • Ohio Municipal Courts • Ohio Court of Claims
State resources:
Courts in Ohio • Ohio judicial elections • Judicial selection in Ohio
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