Marilyn Zayas
2016 - Present
2025
8
Marilyn Zayas (Democratic Party) is a judge of the Ohio First District Court of Appeals. She assumed office on November 6, 2016. Her current term ends on February 9, 2025.
Zayas (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.
Biography
Marilyn Zayas earned a B.S. from City College of New York in 1987 and a law degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1997. Zayas' career experience includes working as an IT manager with Procter & Gamble and as an attorney.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2024
General election
General election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Marilyn Zayas defeated Stacy Lefton in the general election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Marilyn Zayas (D) | 56.0 | 212,544 | |
 | Stacy Lefton (R) | 44.0 | 166,914 | |
| Total votes: 379,458 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Marilyn Zayas advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Marilyn Zayas | 100.0 | 29,212 | |
| Total votes: 29,212 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Stacy Lefton advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on March 19, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Stacy Lefton | 100.0 | 32,852 |
| Total votes: 32,852 | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Zayas in this election.
2022
See also: Ohio Supreme Court elections, 2022
General election
General election for Ohio Supreme Court
Incumbent Pat DeWine defeated Marilyn Zayas in the general election for Ohio Supreme Court on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Pat DeWine (R) | 56.3 | 2,306,428 | |
| Marilyn Zayas (D) | 43.7 | 1,789,384 | ||
| Total votes: 4,095,812 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Ohio Supreme Court
Marilyn Zayas advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio Supreme Court on May 3, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Marilyn Zayas | 100.0 | 406,732 | |
| Total votes: 406,732 | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for Ohio Supreme Court
Incumbent Pat DeWine advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio Supreme Court on May 3, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Pat DeWine | 100.0 | 719,162 | |
| Total votes: 719,162 | ||||
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Campaign finance
2018
General election
General election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Marilyn Zayas defeated Dale Stalf in the general election for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Marilyn Zayas (D) | 60.4 | 175,094 | |
| Dale Stalf (R) | 39.6 | 114,704 | ||
| Total votes: 289,798 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals
Incumbent Marilyn Zayas advanced from the Democratic primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on May 8, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Marilyn Zayas | 100.0 | 32,570 | |
| Total votes: 32,570 | ||||
| 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
Dale Stalf advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio First District Court of Appeals on May 8, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Dale Stalf | 100.0 | 27,934 | |
| Total votes: 27,934 | ||||
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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]
2016
- See also: Ohio judicial elections, 2016
Incumbent Judge Stautberg ran for his seat on the Ohio First District Court of Appeals. He was appointed to the seat by Governor John Kasich (R) in 2015. According to Ohio state law, judges appointed to the appellate court by the governor must run in the next election cycle in order to continue serving on the court until the term expires. Democrat Marilyn Zayas filed to run against Stautberg.
General election
| Ohio First District Court of Appeals, Stautberg's Seat, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Marilyn Zayas-Davis |
50.58% | 156,687 | |
| Republican | Peter Stautberg Incumbent | 49.42% | 153,119 | |
| Total Votes (100% reporting) | 309,806 | |||
| Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
Primary
| Ohio First District Court of Appeals, Judge Stautberg's Seat Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Marilyn Zayas-Davis (unopposed) |
100.00% | 56,442 | |
| Total Votes | 56,442 | |||
| Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Marilyn Zayas did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Marilyn Zayas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Zayas' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
I am a judge on Ohio’s First District Court of Appeals, and the first and only Latina elected to any Ohio appellate court. As a political outsider, I was honored to be elected in 2016 by 51%, and re-elected in 2018 by over 60% of the voters. My judicial reputation is that I consider the perspectives of all involved, and faithfully apply the law and our constitution. My goal is to continue to build a judicial reputation that protects the integrity of the court and inspires others from nontraditional backgrounds to pursue law careers.
Since joining the court, I have decided over 1,200 cases throughout Ohio. I was selected by Ohio’s Chief Justice to sit with the Ohio Supreme Court for a case. I was also appointed by the Chief Justice to sit on the Second, Sixth, Eighth, and Tenth District Courts of Appeal. I am rated “Excellent”, the highest rating by the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association.
I grew up in a working-class neighborhood that was devastated by drugs and crime. Ohio became my home 34 years ago when I came to work as an IT manager for Procter & Gamble. I have three adult children and two rescue dogs.
- Judicial Independence and Integrity: When people come to court, they want an equal opportunity to be heard and an independent judge who will fully and fairly resolves the case. My judicial philosophy is to faithfully apply the law and our constitution equally to all, independent of outside influence or partisan pressure. Politics have no role to play in our judiciary. My judicial record shows that I thoroughly review the facts of each case, analyze and apply the law as written, and understand that each decision affects people of all walks of life throughout the varied communities of Ohio’s 88 counties. My priority is to ensure that the law is applied fairly and consistently, with integrity, independence, and common sense.
- Courts that are Accountable and Accessible: I will support and advance the justice reform initiatives introduced by our current Chief Justice to enlarge accountability, transparency and access. This includes creating a state-wide, public access sentencing database where you can review sentences across the counties for similar offenses with similar circumstances. I am also interested in advancing initiatives that work towards eliminating bias in our justice system. Additionally, I will seek ways to support and enlarge the use of specialized dockets that have proven to be successful in helping people get on their feet and to reduce crimes on our community. This includes the mental health, veterans, and drug courts.
- Courts that work for you: It is important to have judges with a variety of backgrounds and perspectives to ensure that each issue is carefully and completely reviewed. I bring a unique perspective to the court, which comes from my 6 years of experience as an appellate judge, my 20 years of experience advocating for clients, and my underprivileged background. Our state deserves a justice from a background and circumstances that represent many of the Ohioans the court serves, who has the courage to take on challenging issues with an independent and common-sense approach focused on maintaining the integrity of our judiciary.
Inspiring Our Youth: Since my election, I have created and implemented the “Educating Tomorrow’s Leaders program,” a partnership with high schools and universities that brings students to our Court of Appeals. I am committed to providing students with the opportunity to learn about the court system, observe our court system in action, and interact with judges and attorneys. My goal is to inspire and mentor the next generation and encourage them to pursue their dreams regardless of the obstacles they face. My childhood was very humble. I was born in Spanish Harlem and grew up in tough, drug and crime ridden, inner-city neighborhoods. I was not expected to accomplish much in my life, but I had dreams of escaping the challenges I faced growing up. I learned the value of hard work, dedication, and education, and overcame numerous obstacles to earn a college degree in computer science. A few years later, I followed my passion to become an attorney. During this time, I learned the value and importance of helping hands along the way, and it inspires me to help others achieve their dreams. In 2021 Good Morning America recognized me for my community contributions, including my work with students.
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
Judge Marilyn Zayas participated in Ballotpedia's candidate survey on April 10, 2018. The survey questions appear in bold, and Judge Marilyn Zayas's responses follow below.[3]
What would be your top three priorities, if elected?
| “ | 1) Judicial Temperament: Judicial independence and integrity requires that judges perform their duties fairly and impartially. My legal philosophy is to be faithful to the law. Politics should have no role to play in our judiciary. It is of paramount importance to me that I thoroughly review the facts and evidence of each case, analyze and apply the law as written, and to ensure a just and fair resolution. Public trust and confidence in the judiciary is achieved through transparency. My team of staff attorneys and I work very hard to ensure that our decisions are detailed, well-analyzed, and rooted in the law. By clearly and concisely explaining our decisions to the parties, we best ensure that they can move on with their lives, regardless of the case’s outcome, because their case was fully and fairly resolved. 2) Conscientious: For over six years, I was an IT Manager at Procter & Gamble. My engineering and technology experiences fostered my critical thinking skills and my ability to analyze and solve problems while paying attention to details. The job required the integrity to maintain high standards while meeting deadlines and serving the clients. These skills help ensure that accuracy is not compromised in reviewing the entirety of every case that comes before me at our Court of Appeals. I previously served the community as an attorney for nearly 20 years. I have worked in a variety of environments including a large law firm, the Hamilton County Public Defender’s Office, and running my own legal practice. My extensive legal background includes experience in Federal and State appeals, immigration law, intellectual property, labor and employment, criminal, delinquency, custody and adoptions. I established a successful law practice assisting a variety of clients in navigating the complex immigration system including entrepreneurs, hospitals, performance artists, technology firms and physicians. My law practice was built on a strong reputation for providing honest and zealous representation, and on the intricate cases I successfully navigated. It is my priority to ensure the law is applied with balance and consistency in every case. My past experience allows me to thoroughly review each case and accurately apply the law. |
” |
What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about? Why?
| “ | Inspiring Our Youth: Since my election, I have created and implemented the “Students to Court of Appeals Program,” a partnership with local high schools to bring High School students to our Court of Appeals. I am committed to providing students with the opportunity to learn about the court system, observe our court system in action, and interact with judges and attorneys. My goal is to inspire and mentor the next generation and encourage them to pursue their dreams regardless of the obstacles they face. My childhood was very humble. I was born in Spanish Harlem and grew up in one of the toughest New York City neighborhoods. I was not expected to accomplish much in my life, but I had dreams of escaping the poverty and challenges I faced growing up. I learned the value of hard work, dedication, and education, and overcame numerous obstacles to earn a college degree in computer science, from the school of engineering. A few years later, I followed my passion to become an attorney. During this time, I learned the value and importance of helping hands along the way, and it inspires me to help others achieve their dreams. I would be honored to continue to serve our community and ensure that justice is administered with integrity, independence, and impartiality.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many[5]
|
” |
Zayas stated the following about her political philosophy in a biographical submission to Ballotpedia:[1]
| “ | My legal philosophy is to be faithful to the law. Politics should have no role to play in our judiciary. It is of paramount importance to me that I thoroughly review the facts and evidence of each case, analyze and apply the law as written, and to ensure a just and fair resolution.[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
|
Candidate Ohio First District Court of Appeals |
Officeholder Ohio First District Court of Appeals |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Information submitted on Ballotpedia's biographical information submission form on April 10, 2018
- ↑ 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, "Judge Marilyn Zayas's responses," April 10, 2018
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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