Ron O'Brien

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Ron O'Brien

Republican Party

Prior offices

Franklin County Prosecutor

Successor: Gary Tyack

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Elections and appointments

Last election

November 3, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

Ohio Dominican University, 1970

Law

The Ohio State University, 1974

Personal

Birthplace

Columbus, Ohio

Religion

Roman Catholic

Profession

Prosecuting Attorney

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Campaign YouTube

Ron O'Brien (Republican Party) was the Franklin County Prosecutor in Ohio. He assumed office in 1997. He left office on January 4, 2021.

O'Brien (Republican Party) ran for re-election for Franklin County Prosecutor in Ohio. He lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

O'Brien completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Ron O'Brien was born in Columbus, Ohio. He received a bachelor's degree from Ohio Dominican University in 1970 and a J.D. from the Ohio State University in 1974. O'Brien has served as the Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney, the Columbus City Prosecutor, and the Columbus City Attorney. He has been affiliated with the Ohio State Bar Association, the National District Attorneys Association, the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association, the Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association, Charity Newsies, the Ohio State University Alumni Association, the Shamrock Club of Columbus, and Our Lady of Peace Roman Catholic Church.

Elections

2020

See also: Municipal elections in Franklin County, Ohio (2020)

General election

General election for Franklin County Prosecutor

Gary Tyack defeated incumbent Ron O'Brien in the general election for Franklin County Prosecutor on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gary Tyack (D)	53.6	327,004
		Ron O'Brien (R)	46.4	283,602

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 610,606
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Franklin County Prosecutor

Gary Tyack advanced from the Democratic primary for Franklin County Prosecutor on April 28, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Gary Tyack	100.0	94,017

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 94,017
= 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 Franklin County Prosecutor

Incumbent Ron O'Brien advanced from the Republican primary for Franklin County Prosecutor on April 28, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Ron O'Brien	100.0	31,645

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2	Total votes: 31,645
= 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.

Endorsements

O'Brien was endorsed by the Central Ohio Labor Council, AFL-CIO; Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council; Columbus Firefighters Union Local #67; FOP Capital City Lodge #9; "highly recommended" by Ohio Veterans United; International Union Of Operating Engineers Local 18; Ohio AFSCME Power in Action; Teamsters Local 284; Teamsters Local Union No. 418; United Steelworkers District 1; and The Columbus Dispatch.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Ron O'Brien completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by O'Brien's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Ron O'Brien, Franklin County's 50th Prosecuting Attorney, is the former Columbus City Attorney and Columbus City Prosecutor, providing governmental law service to the City of Columbus, Franklin County and its citizens. A lifelong resident of Franklin County, Ron O'Brien graduated from St. Francis DeSales High School. He earned his undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Ohio Dominican University and his Juris Doctorate degree from The Ohio State University, cum laude. Ron O'Brien started his legal career of public service as a legal intern in the Prosecutor's Office while still a student at The Ohio State University. After graduation from law school, he was appointed as Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, and, later, a Senior Assistant Prosecuting Attorney. After serving as Columbus City Prosecutor, Ron O'Brien was elected Columbus City Attorney, and was re-elected twice. He has more than 20 years of experience as Franklin County Prosecutor, fighting to keep Franklin County families safe.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• 1) Combating opioid and heroin addiction: I spearheaded the creation of Franklin County's first Drug Court - an effort that continues to get addicts the treatment they need instead of simply sending them to prison. I've also worked across the aisle to implement desperately needed drug sentencing reform.
• 2) Prosecuting corruption: I believe that public servants who violate the public trust through corruption in public office must be held accountable. I have aggressively pursued corruption and ethics violations, regardless of politics, and have successfully prosecuted politicians from both political parties.
• 3) Implementing criminal justice reform: I have been a statewide leader in addressing criminal justice issues and have worked closely with the Ohio Innocence Project to use DNA evidence to exonerate wrongly convicted individuals and free them from prison. The director of the Ohio Innocence Project said I act "like somebody who's interested in justice, not just winning cases."

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

If re-elected, I will continue to work with law enforcement and the courts to address the statewide opioid and heroin epidemic. Through drug sentencing reform, we can ensure addicts receive the help they need, while punishing the drug traffickers who poison our communities.

I will continue to work with the Ohio Innocence Project, a group that uses DNA evidence to exonerate wrongly convicted individuals and free them from prison, to protect the residents of Franklin County and ensure justice for all. Neither of those interests is served if someone is wrongfully convicted.

I will work to eliminate the scourge of human trafficking in our community. Modern day slavery has no place in our county, and aggressively seeking out perpetrators, while helping survivors receive the help they need, is a top priority.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

I am uniquely qualified to continue serving as Franklin County Prosecutor because of my unmatched prosecutorial experience. I have exclusively devoted my legal career to serving in the public sector, and standing with the victims of crime and protecting Franklin County families. I served as President of both the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association and the Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association. I have been recognized in the publication "Ohio's Top Lawyers," and was named Ohio's Top Prosecutor in 2015 by a bipartisan group of my peers. I worked with the Ohio Innocence Project to use DNA evidence to exonerate two wrongly convicted individuals and free them from prison, and was described by the director of the organization as "the most progressive prosecutor in the state of Ohio."

What legacy would you like to leave?

As a lifelong resident of Franklin County, protecting and giving back to the community remain my top priorities. Without the safety of individuals and families, there is no fabric to hold our society together. Before people can work, or shop, or play, they have to know they're safe. That's why the job of Prosecuting Attorney for Franklin County is so fulfilling.

Ever since college, I've had a single passion: protecting central Ohioans. I've done this throughout my career by prosecuting violent criminals and taking them off our streets, convicting politicians from both parties who betray the public trust, and getting drug addicts and victims the help they and their families need and deserve. I hope to continue this fight on behalf of Franklin County's residents.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

The Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney absolutely needs to have experience standing with victims and fighting to keep families safe. I am the only candidate in this race with experience prosecuting criminals - over 20 years of experience, in fact. I was endorsed by The Columbus Dispatch for re-election, which noted that my opponent's background "does not include any time prosecuting a criminal case...Experience is again the differentiator in the race. O'Brien has been a good steward of the prosecutor's office."

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

I believe that learning the ropes from the ground up is the key to success in becoming a fair and effective prosecutor. This is not an ivory tower, executive job. Serving as Franklin County Prosecutor is about being on the ground, a part of the community, and serving others. The only way you can do the job - and do it well - is to put in months and years in the court system, and learn the lessons of dealing with some of society's most troubled people. Having spent my career in public service, these are lessons I've learned day in and day out.

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.

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