From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base
Cincinnati City Council
Lawmaking body of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Lawmaking body of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Cincinnati City Council |
| legislature | City Council |
| coa_pic | Seal of Cincinnati, Ohio.svg |
| house_type | City Council |
| houses | Unicameral |
| leader1_type | Vice Mayor |
| leader1 | Jan Michele Kearney |
| party1 | Democratic |
| election1 | January 4, 2022 |
| leader2_type | President Pro Tempore |
| leader2 | Vacant |
| members | Nine |
| structure1 | File:Composition of Cincinnati City Council.svg |
| structure1_res | 280px |
| political_groups1 | * Democratic (9) |
| voting_system1 | at-large |
| last_election1 | November 7, 2025 |
| next_election1 | November 4, 2027 |
| session_room | CincinnatiCityHall.jpg |
| meeting_place | Cincinnati City Hall |
| 801 Plum St, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 | |
| constitution | Charter |
| website | http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/council/ |
801 Plum St, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
The Cincinnati City Council is the lawmaking body of Cincinnati, Ohio. The nine-member city council is elected at-large in a single election in which each voter chooses nine candidates from the field. The nine top vote-getters win seats on the council for a two-year term.
Until the charter of 1925, the council comprised 32 members—six elected at-large and 26 elected from single-member wards. The 1925 charter instituted the present nine-member council elected in a single non-partisan, at-large election. From 1925 to 1955, elections were under the single transferable vote form of proportional representation. The mayor was chosen by the council from among its members. In the 1970s, the system was changed so that the top vote-getter in the council election automatically became mayor. Since 2001, the mayor is chosen in a separate election.
Although the election officially is non-partisan, the local Charterite party and three of the major political parties (Democratic, Republican, and Green Party) all endorse candidates in the race. Party designations, however, can be fluid. After the 1997 election, for example, Democrats Minette Cooper and Dwight Tillery formed a majority coalition on the council with Republicans Charlie Winburn, Phil Heimlich, and Jeanette Cissell.
Prior to 2013, council members were elected for two-year terms. In 2013, a referendum was passed changing City Council to four-year terms. In 2018, two competing proposals were placed on the ballot to modify the structure of the City Council yet again. Issue 10 would bring back two-year terms; Issue 11 would keep four-year terms but stagger them, such that five council members would be elected in a mayoral election year, and four council members would be elected two years later. Issue 10 passed with a larger margin of victory, and the City Council returned to two-year terms beginning with the 2021 election.
The next city council election is scheduled for November 2027.
Cincinnati City Council Members
| Council Member | Party | First elected | Other Positions | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan-Michele Kearney | Democrat | 2020 (Appointed) | Vice Mayor | Replaced Tamaya Dennard on March 11, 2020, who resigned after federal charges of bribery. | |
| Jeff Cramerding | Democrat | 2021 | |||
| Mark Jeffreys | Democrat | 2021 | |||
| Scotty Johnson | Democrat | 2021 | |||
| Meeka Owens | Democrat | 2021 | |||
| Seth Walsh | Democrat | 2022 (Appointed) | Replaced Greg Landsman on December 19, 2022, who resigned to serve OH-01 | ||
| Anna Albi | Democrat | 2023 | |||
| Evan Nolan | Democrat | 2024 (Appointed) | Replaced Reggie Harris on October 11, 2024, who resigned to serve as the deputy assistant secretary of economic development in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development | ||
| Ryan James | Democrat | 2025 |
Election results
Italic type indicates incumbent.
(D) indicates Democratic Party candidate.
(R) indicates Republican Party candidate.
(G) indicates [[Green Party of the United States| Green party]] candidate.
(C) indicates Charter Committee candidate.
(I) indicates no party affiliation.
| Year | Winning candidates | Losing candidates |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Jan-Michele Kearney (D): 43,971 | |
| Scotty Johnson (D): 40,781 | ||
| Meeka D. Owens (D):39,826 | ||
| Anna Albi (D): 39,028 | ||
| Mark Jeffreys (D): 38,380 | ||
| Seth Walsh (D): 36,176 | ||
| Jeff Cramerding (D): 34,870 | ||
| Evan Nolan (D): 34,790 | ||
| Ryan James (D): 33,689 | Liz Keating (C, R): 24,526 | |
| Christopher Smitherman (I): 17,496 | ||
| 2023 | Jan-Michele Kearney (D): 49,033 | |
| Meeka D. Owens (D): 48,825 | ||
| Reggie Harris (D):48,443 | ||
| Victoria Parks (D): 45,490 | ||
| Scotty Johnson (D): 44,899 | ||
| Mark Jeffreys (D): 44,544 | ||
| Anna Albi (D): 43,973 | ||
| Jeff Cramerding (D): 41,983 | ||
| Seth Walsh (D): 39,950 | Liz Keating (C, R): 36,176 | |
| 2021 | Jan-Michele Kearney (D): 28,161 | |
| Greg Landsman (D): 26,532 | ||
| Reggie Harris (D):25,305 | ||
| Meeka Owens (D): 24,177 | ||
| Victoria Parks (D): 22,443 | ||
| Scotty Johnson (D): 19,888 | ||
| Jeff Cramerding (D): 19,356 | ||
| Mark Jeffreys (D): 18,433 | ||
| Liz Keating (C, R): 17,156 | Michelle Dillingham (I): 15,618 | |
| Philip O'Neal (D): 14,995 | ||
| Kevin Flynn (C): 13,665 | ||
| Betsy Sundermann (R): 13,599 | ||
| Steve Goodin (C, R): 12,594 | ||
| Jim Tarbell (C): 11,526 | ||
| Brian Garry (I): 10,066 | ||
| Thomas Brinkman (R): 9,642 | ||
| John Williams (C): 8,200 | ||
| LaKeisha Cook (I): 7,021 | ||
| Jackie Frondorf (C): 6,815 | ||
| Jaime Castle (I): 6,266 | ||
| Peterson Mingo (I): 5,163 | ||
| Evan Holt (DSA): 5,013 | ||
| Kurt Grossman (I): 4,876 | ||
| Bill Frost (C): 4,614 | ||
| Galen Gordon (C): 4,107 | ||
| Stacy Smith (I): 4,007 | ||
| Te'Airea Powell (I): 3,988 | ||
| Jalen Alford (I): 3,066 | ||
| Rob Harris II (I):2,587 | ||
| Andrew Kennedy (I):2,393 | ||
| John Maher (I): 2,117 | ||
| Logan Simmering (G): 1,608 | ||
| K.A. Heard Jr (G):1,461 | ||
| Nick Jabin (I): 1,319 | ||
| 2017 | P.G. Sittenfeld (D): 39,815 | |
| David Mann (C, D): 35,789 | ||
| Chris Seelbach (D): 30,626 | ||
| Wendell Young (D): 28,295 | ||
| Christopher Smitherman (I): 27,149 | ||
| Tamaya Dennard (C, D): 26,053 | ||
| Greg Landsman (D): 25,049 | ||
| Amy Murray (C, R): 23,888 | ||
| Jeff Pastor (R): 21,996 | Michelle Dillingham (D): 21,773 | |
| Ozie Davis (D): 18,671 | ||
| Lesley Jones (D): 18,345 | ||
| Laure Quinlivan (I): 16,758 | ||
| Derek Bauman (C): 16,680 | ||
| Henry Frondorf (C): 10,637 | ||
| Seth Maney (R): 10,114 | ||
| Brian Garry (G): 9,152 | ||
| Kelli Prather (I): 7,175 | ||
| Tamie Sullivan (G): 6,232 | ||
| Tonya Dumas (I): 6,186 | ||
| Erica L. Black-Johnson (I): 5,539 | ||
| Cristina Burcica (I): 4,150 | ||
| Manuel Foggie (I): 3,556 | ||
| Dadrien Washington (I): 125 | ||
| 2013 | P.G. Sittenfeld (D): 37,484 | |
| Charlie Winburn (R): 27,397 | ||
| David Mann (C, D): 26,443 | ||
| Yvette Simpson (C, D): 25,449 | ||
| Chris Seelbach (D): 23,738 | ||
| Christopher Smitherman (I): 23,604 | ||
| Wendell Young (D): 22,600 | ||
| Kevin Flynn (C): 22,059 | ||
| Amy Murray (C, R): 21,979 | Laure Quinlivan (D): 21,079 | |
| Greg Landsman (C, D): 19,619 | ||
| Michelle Dillingham (D): 19,143 | ||
| Pam Thomas (D): 18,499 | ||
| Vanessa White (C): 16,892 | ||
| Sam Malone (R): 16,462 | ||
| Mellisa Wegman (R): 9,942 | ||
| Shawn Butler (D): 9,788 | ||
| Mike Moroski (I): 8,688 | ||
| Angela Beamon (I): 7,943 | ||
| Kevin Johnson (I): 6,647 | ||
| Timothy Joseph Dorsbrusch (I): 4,006 | ||
| 2011 | Roxanne Qualls (C, D): 38,903 | |
| P.G. Sittenfeld (D): 31,673 | ||
| Wendell Young (D): 30,526 | ||
| Cecil Thomas (D): 30,405 | ||
| Charlie Winburn (R): 30,080 | ||
| Laure Quinlivan (D): 28,601 | ||
| Yvette Simpson (C, D): 28,589 | ||
| Christopher Smitherman (I): 24,981 | ||
| Chris Seelbach (D): 24,494 | Chris Bortz (C): 22,805 | |
| Kevin Flynn (C): 22,631 | ||
| Amy Murray (R): 22,096 | ||
| Leslie Ghiz (R): 21,391 | ||
| Jason Riveiro (D): 19,025 | ||
| Wayne Lippert (R): 18,973 | ||
| Mike Allen (I): 17,167 | ||
| Nicholas Hollan (D): 15,309 | ||
| Catherine Smith Mills (R): 13,913 | ||
| Pat McCollum (I): 6,497 | ||
| Kathy Atkinson (I): 5,220 | ||
| Jacqueline Allen (I): 4,829 | ||
| Sandra Queen Noble (I): 2,890 | ||
| Orlando Welborn (I): 34 | ||
| 2009 | url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091108195725/http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2009/11/03/mallory-more-focused-on-9/ | date=2009-11-08 }} 30,509 |
| Leslie Ghiz (R): 30,050 | ||
| Chris Monzel (R): 29,786 | ||
| Charlie Winburn (R): 29,055 | ||
| Y. Laketa Cole (D): 28,976 | ||
| Laure Quinlivan (D): 28,775 | Greg Harris (D): 25,216 | |
| Bernadette Watson (D): 24,985 | ||
| Amy Murray (R): 23,667 | ||
| Kevin Flynn (C): 23,619 | ||
| Wendell Young (D): 22,100 | ||
| Tony Fischer (D): 21,742 | ||
| Nicholas Hollan (D): 18,096 | ||
| George Zamary (R): 12,834 | ||
| Anitra Brockman (G): 8,071 | ||
| LaMarque Ward (I): 7,806 | ||
| 2007 | Roxanne Qualls (C): 33,775 | |
| John Cranley (D): 33,772 | ||
| David Crowley (D): 31,124 | ||
| Cecil Thomas (D): 27,103 | ||
| Chris Bortz (C): 26,500 | ||
| Leslie Ghiz (R): 24,920 | ||
| Y. Laketa Cole (D): 24,900 | ||
| Jeff Berding (D): 23,586 | ||
| Chris Monzel (R): 23,336 | Charlie Winburn (R): 22,080 | |
| Minette Cooper (D): 18,941 | ||
| Sam Malone (R): 17,486 | ||
| Melanie Bates (C): 15,376 | ||
| Pat Fischer (R): 15,084 | ||
| Greg Harris (D): 14,184 | ||
| John Eby (R): 14,025 | ||
| Wendell Young (D): 13,963 | ||
| Brian Garry (D): 13,164 | ||
| Joan Kaup (C): 8,476 | ||
| Andre Harper (R): 7,499 | ||
| Justin Jeffre (G): 7,371 | ||
| Mitch Painter (I): 5,140 | ||
| Steve Pavelish (I): 4,213 | ||
| Michael Earl Patton (I): 3,149 | ||
| George Zamary (I): 2,203 | ||
| 2005 | John Cranley (D): 35,603 | |
| James R. Tarbell (C): 32,392 | ||
| Y. Laketa Cole (D): 29,966 | ||
| David Crowley (D): 29,856 | ||
| Leslie Ghiz (R): 29,758 | ||
| Jeff Berding (D): 28,344 | ||
| Chris Monzel (R): 27,911 | ||
| Chris Bortz (C): 27,304 | ||
| Cecil Thomas (D): 27,091 | Sam Malone (R): 25,838 | |
| Christopher Smitherman (C/G): 24,642 | ||
| Damon Lynch III (D): 22,556 | ||
| Wendell Young (D): 21,505 | ||
| Eve Bolton (D): 19,729 | ||
| John Eby (R): 16,272 | ||
| Samantha Herd (D): 14,306 | ||
| Nick Spencer (C): 9,462 | ||
| Paul Mcghee (I): 5,407 | ||
| Gerry Kraus (I): 4,719 | ||
| William S. "Stew" Mathews II (I): 3,915 | ||
| Robert J. Wilking (I): 3,762 | ||
| Ishaq Nadir (I): 3,208 | ||
| Eric Wilson (I): 3,082 | ||
| Michael Earl Patton (I): 2,770 | ||
| Curtis Wells (I): 2,482 | ||
| Robert Wilson (I): 2,319 | ||
| Ronnie T. Stallworth (I): 2,271 | ||
| Bill Barron (I): 1,849 | ||
| Bennie Green (I): 1,800 | ||
| Victor Phillips (I): 1,695 | ||
| Antonio Hodge (I): 1,276 | ||
| 2003 | David Pepper (D): 34,405 | |
| Alicia Reece (D): 32,078 | ||
| Y. Laketa Cole (D): 27,644 | ||
| James R. Tarbell (C): 27,480 | ||
| John Cranley (D): 26,980 | ||
| R. Patrick DeWine (R): 26,573 | ||
| Christopher Smitherman (C, G): 25,483 | ||
| Sam Malone (R): 24,002 | ||
| David Crowley (D): 22,713 | ||
| 2001 | David Pepper (D): 45,174 | |
| R. Patrick DeWine (R): 43,191 | ||
| Alicia Reece (D): 43,180 | ||
| Minette Cooper (D): 38,040 | ||
| John Cranley (D): 36,998 | ||
| James R. Tarbell (C): 35,533 | ||
| David Crowley: (D): 33,225 | ||
| Paul Booth (D): 27,732 | ||
| Chris Monzel (R): 26,479 | Y. Laketa Cole (D): 24,567 | |
| Todd Ward (R): 23,895 | ||
| Sam Malone (R): 23,211 | ||
| Jane Anderson (I): 21,026 | ||
| Akiva Freeman (I): 19,788 | ||
| Dawn Denno (I): 19,598 | ||
| Lawra Baumann (I): 17,686 | ||
| Ken Anderson (I): 15,119 | ||
| Clarence D. Williams III (I): 14,371 | ||
| Nathaniel Livingston Jr. (I): 12,735 | ||
| Tom Jones (I): 12,235 | ||
| John F. Schlagetter (C): 10,269 | ||
| William Kirkland (I): 6,211 | ||
| Theo Barnes (I): 4,795 | ||
| Eric Wilson (I): 4,376 | ||
| Wes Flinn (I): 3,682 | ||
| Toni Andrews (I): 3,651 | ||
| 1999 | Mayor: Charles J. Luken (D): 42,022 | |
| Todd Portune (D): 36,333 | ||
| Charlie Winburn (R): 34,176 | ||
| Phil Heimlich (R): 31,487 | ||
| Alicia Reece (D): 27,900 | ||
| R. Patrick DeWine (R): 27,745 | ||
| James R. Tarbell (C): 26,045 | ||
| Minette Cooper (D): 25,277 | ||
| Paul Booth (D): 22,667 | Jeanette Cissell (R): 22,095 | |
| Diane Goldsmith (R): 21,250 | ||
| Scott V. Seidewitz (D): 20,389 | ||
| Kaye M. Britton (D): 19,300 | ||
| Forrest L. Buckley (D): 19,248 | ||
| Jane Anderson (I): 17,297 | ||
| Ken Anderson (I): 15,433 | ||
| Chris Monzel (R): 9,335 | ||
| Sam Malone (I): 5,030 | ||
| Theo Barnes (I): 4,885 | ||
| Charlie Lee Gardner (I): 3,312 | ||
| 1997 | Mayor: Roxanne Qualls (D): 50,560 | |
| Dwight Tillery (D): 45,238 | ||
| Todd Portune (D): 42,721 | ||
| Charlie Winburn (R): 39,913 | ||
| Bobbie L. Sterne (C): 39,529 | ||
| Phil Heimlich (R): 37,896 | ||
| Tyrone Yates (D): 35,592 | ||
| Minette Cooper (D): 35,451 | ||
| Jeanette Cissell (R): 34,209 | James R. Tarbell (C): 33,867 | |
| Forrest Buckley (D): 25,357 | ||
| Diane Goldsmith (R): 22,676 | ||
| Kaye Britton (D): 20,724 | ||
| Rosemary Meyer (R): 18,976 | ||
| Todd Ward (R): 18,438 | ||
| Bryn Lewis (C): 10,135 | ||
| William Gaz (R): 9,213 | ||
| Theo Barnes (I): 6,051 | ||
| 1995 | Mayor: Roxanne Qualls (D): 49,165 | |
| Phil Heimlich (R): 48,072 | ||
| Dwight Tillery (D): 45,616 | ||
| Bobbie L. Sterne (C): 40,663 | ||
| Nick Vehr (R): 40,207 | ||
| Minette Cooper (D): 40,105 | ||
| Charlie Winburn (R): 38,963 | ||
| Todd Portune (D): 36,308 | ||
| Tyrone Yates (D): 33,644 | Jeannette Cissell (R): 31,960 | |
| Mark Longabaugh (D): 30,969 | ||
| John Kruse (R): 28,098 | ||
| John Mirlisena (D): 27,379 | ||
| Diane Goldsmith (R): 26,627 | ||
| Norman Murdock (R): 24,369 | ||
| Don Driehaus (D): 22,961 | ||
| Elwood Cromwell III (R): 9,109 | ||
| John Henry Simmons (I): 4,354 | ||
| 1993 | Mayor: Roxanne Qualls (D): 48,476 | |
| Dwight Tillery (D): 45,928 | ||
| Nick Vehr (R): 45,494 | ||
| Bobbie L. Sterne (C): 43,077 | ||
| Thomas A. Luken (D): 39,771 | ||
| Charlie Winburn (R): 39,670 | ||
| Tyrone Yates (D): 36,204 | ||
| Todd Portune (D): 34,460 | ||
| Phil Heimlich (R): 33,873 | John Mirlisena (D): 32,915 | |
| Virginia Rhodes (D): 29,327 | ||
| Jeannette Cissell (R): 27,504 | ||
| Martin Wade (R): 26,224 | ||
| Anne Power (R): 25,232 | ||
| John Kruse (R): 24,713 | ||
| Nell D. Surber (R): 23,714 | ||
| Eric Kearney (C): 23,138 | ||
| Val Sena (C): 18,131 | ||
| Matthew Rosen (D): 15,851 | ||
| Barbara Milton (D): 14,078 | ||
| Pat Clifford (I): 7,759 | ||
| 1991 | Mayor: Dwight Tillery (D): 52,020 | |
| Guy Guckenberger (I): 49,793 | ||
| David S. Mann (D): 48,595 | ||
| John Mirlisena (D): 47,655 | ||
| Peter J. Strauss (D): 45,577 | ||
| James Cissell (R): 42,467 | ||
| Bobbie L. Sterne (C): 40,697 | ||
| Roxanne Qualls (D): 38,543 | ||
| Tyrone Yates (C): 36,548 | Nick Vehr (R): 33,277 | |
| Virginia Rhodes (D): 32,240 | ||
| Nell D. Surber (R): 27,281 | ||
| William Al'Uqdah (R): 21,846 | ||
| Martin Wade (R): 19,993 | ||
| Shirley Rosser (D): 18,189 | ||
| Jay Andress (R): 16,807 | ||
| Mary Ann Brown (R): 15,290 | ||
| Val Sena (C): 14,886 | ||
| Len Garrett (R): 12,365 | ||
| Richard L. Buchanan (D): 11,655 | ||
| Chaunston Brown (D): 10,461 | ||
| Todd O'Neal (I): 9,684 | ||
| John Cheng (I): 6,866 | ||
| Claudia Miller (I): 6,337 | ||
| Anita F. Bolce (I): 6,712 | ||
| Dennis L. Maxberry (I): 3,336 |
Notes
References
- Barber, Kathleen. Proportional Representation and Election Reform in Ohio. Ohio State University Press, 1995.
- (5 November 2018). "Cincinnati voters beware of Issues 10 and 11". American City Business Journals.
- (18 March 2020). "Kearney Joins Cincinnati City Council".
- (9 December 2022). "Seth Walsh will replace Greg Landsman on Cincinnati Council".
- (11 October 2024). "Why Meeka Owens named lawyer Evan Nolan to Cincinnati City Council".
- Qualls was endorsed by the Charter Committee and the Democratic Party. [http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20091108/NEWS0108/911090329/ Qualls' clout grows; options abound]
- The Democratic Party withdrew its endorsement of Berding. [http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2009/11/03/mallory-more-focused-on-9/ Mallory more focused on 9] {{webarchive. link. (2009-11-08)
- After John Cranley stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Harris was sworn in as his replacement on January 12, 2009.
- After James R. Tarbell stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Qualls was sworn in as his replacement on September 4, 2007.
- After R. Patrick DeWine stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Monzel was sworn in as his replacement on January 14, 2005.
- After Paul Booth stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Cole was sworn in as his replacement on April 23, 2003.
- After Todd Portune stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Cranley was sworn in as his replacement in December, 2000.
- After Phil Heimlich stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Monzel was sworn in as his replacement in February 2001.
- After Bobbie Sterne stepped down from her seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Tarbell was sworn in as her replacement in 1998.
- After Nick Vehr stepped down from his seat on the Cincinnati City Council, Cissell was sworn in as his replacement in 1996.
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
Ask Mako anything about Cincinnati City Council — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.
Research with MakoFree with your Surf account
Create a free account to save articles, ask Mako questions, and organize your research.
Sign up freeThis content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.
Report