CINCINNATI — For the first time in Hamilton County history, a woman has been elected to serve as prosecutor. Former state Rep. Connie Pillich will be Hamilton County’s next prosecutor.

The Democrat defeated Republican incumbent Melissa Powers, who was appointed to the seat in January 2023 by the Hamilton County Republican Party after former prosecutor Joe Deters was appointed to the Ohio Supreme Court.

Pillich, an Air Force veteran, earned her MBA while on active duty before entering UC Law School, where Powers also studied law. Pillich started his own private practice, prosecuting civil cases. She also served as a public defender in some serious crime cases.

She was elected to the Ohio State House in 2009, a legislative position she held until 2014, when she unsuccessfully lost her bid for Ohio State Treasurer. She will now be the county’s top prosecutor.

While her opponent emphasized that she was not qualified for the job because she had never served as a prosecutor and handled her last civil case in 2022, Pillich said, “I have done everything I can in my adult life to try to keep us safe.”

“As a military officer, as a public defender, as a private practice attorney helping people keep their homes and jobs, and as a state legislator, I want to bring all of those skills to the prosecutor’s office so we can be safe,” Pillich told WCPO before the election.

Find the latest general election results for Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana here.