Melena Siebert
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2025 - Present
2031
0
Melena Siebert (Republican Party) is a judge of the Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals. She assumed office on February 9, 2025. Her current term ends on February 8, 2031.
Siebert (Republican Party) ran for election for judge of the Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Siebert completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Melena Siebert was born in Xenia, Ohio. Siebert's professional experience includes working as an attorney and saleswoman. She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Cincinnati in 1991 and a J.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 2017.[1]
Siebert has been affiliated with Family Promise of Butler County and Center Pointe Christian Church.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2024
General election
General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals
Melena Siebert won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Melena Siebert (R)  | 100.0 | 389,980 | |
| Total votes: 389,980 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals
Melena Siebert defeated Barbara Schneider Carter in the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Melena Siebert | 50.4 | 53,082 | |
 | Barbara Schneider Carter | 49.6 | 52,198 | |
| Total votes: 105,280 | |||
| = 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
To view Siebert's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Siebert in this election.
Campaign themes
2024
Video for Ballotpedia
| Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released February 12, 2024 |
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Melena Siebert completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Siebert's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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My husband and I settled in Butler County 30 years ago. I have been an active, contributing member of the community for years.
I came to the law as a third career. After growing up in Jamestown, in rural Greene County, I went to UC and earned a marketing degree. Although I had always been interested in law and politics and thought about law school after undergrad but ultimately decided to pursue a sales career instead. I had a successful sales career for eight years, selling to a broad spectrum of businesses in the region. Then I stayed home for 15 years and raised two incredible kids. After the kids started growing up, I decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and began law school at the age of 46.
What all of this means to you is that I would bring not only a great deal of legal appellate experience to the bench, but also a a variety of life experiences that enable me to understand different perspectives and will serve you well on the bench.- I believe judicial philosophy matters. Because you vote for judges in Ohio, you have a direct say in the type of judicial philosophy those judges support. My experience proves that I have the strongest, most conservative judicial philosophy of anyone running for this position, and that I will serve the district well.
- Judges at the appellate level must be able to interpret law using solid reasoning while understanding their job is NOT to write new law. We have all seen the impact of judges in both federal and state courts who believe they can make law based upon their personal policy beliefs - that’s why judicial philosophy matters. In courts in Ohio and across the country, I advocate for my clients by interpreting and analyzing statutes and constitutions, using the type of solid reasoning that will serve the district well when I’m elected to the bench.
- Judges must exercise judicial restraint and have respect for the separation of powers – judges don’t write law and they are not supposed to make it up from the bench. As I’ve heard Chief Justice Sharon Kennedy put it, the first question should be, “where is my authority to do what you’re asking me to do?” My experience proves that I understand and respect these principles of judicial restraint and separation of powers because I argue for that on behalf of my clients regularly.
I have many areas of public policy I am passionate about, including: the right to life, promoting a more limited, proper role for the federal and state governments, and protecting individual rights so fundamental to our society.
1. To Kill a Mockingbird because it speaks to justice and the struggle to achieve it so well.
Administratively, our legal system will be strengthened by implementing technology and more streamlined systems for litigators who practice in the courts.
Brown County Republican Party
Right to Life of Butler County
Conservative Republican Leadership Committee
State Representative Rodney Creech
Warren County Right to Life
Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell
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.
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
|
Candidate Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals |
Personal |
Footnotes
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Stephen Powell (R) |
Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals 2025-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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