The County Executive of Cuyahoga County, the second largest county in Ohio, and the 29th largest county by population in the United States, is the elected chief executive of the Cuyahoga County government. Democrat Chris Ronayne is the current county executive. The county charter[1] stipulates that the executive is responsible for the appointment and removal of county personnel, working with other local governments, introducing legislation to the county council, submitting budgets and capital improvements plans to the council, and many other duties.
| County Executive of Cuyahoga County, Ohio | |
|---|---|
 Flag of Cuyahoga County | |
 | |
| Style | The Honorable |
| Term length | Four years. No term limits. |
| Constituting instrument | Charter of Cuyahoga County |
| Inaugural holder | Ed FitzGerald |
| Formation | January 1, 2011 |
| Salary | $175,000 |
| Website | executive |
Formation
editAfter a widespread corruption scandal[2] was revealed, the voters of Cuyahoga County, which includes the City of Cleveland and 58 surrounding suburbs, voted to authorize a new form of county government on November 3, 2009.[3] The charter replaced three county commissioners with an executive and 11-member council. Under the charter, other previously elected posts, such as sheriff, treasurer, and clerk of courts became appointed positions under the executive.[4] Summit County is the only other Ohio county with an executive.
Democrat Ed FitzGerald, the then-Mayor of Lakewood, Ohio, defeated Matt Dolan in the initial election in November 2010[5] and was sworn in as the first Cuyahoga County executive on January 1, 2011 and inaugurated on January 9.[6]
Political implications
editAfter FitzGerald was elected, The Plain Dealer political reporter Henry J. Gomez wrote that many observers believed the county executive job would "be second only to the governor in terms of power and constituency."[5] This prediction seemed to foreshadow FitzGerald's decision to challenge John Kasich's re-election bid for Governor of Ohio in 2014.[7] FitzGerald was the Democratic nominee for the November election. However, he was defeated.[8]
Elections
editAfter FitzGerald chose to run for Governor of Ohio in 2014, then-state Representative Armond Budish was elected to succeed him.[9] Budish was reelected in 2018,[10] but chose not to run again in 2022.[11] Democrat Chris Ronayne defeated Republican Lee Weingart in the November 2022 election to become the third person to hold the office.[12][13]
County Executives
edit| # | Portrait | Name | Term in office | Party affiliation | Previous office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ed FitzGerald (born 1968; age 56) |
January 9, 2011 – December 31, 2014 |
Democratic | Mayor of Lakewood, Ohio | ||
| 2 | Armond Budish (born 1953; age 71) |
January 1, 2015 – December 31, 2022 |
Democratic | Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives | ||
| 3 | Chris Ronayne (born 1968; age 56) |
January 1, 2023 – Incumbent |
Democratic | CEO of University Circle Inc. | ||
References
edit- ^ About the Office – Office of the Cuyahoga County Executive
- ^ McCarty, James. "Federal prosecutors recommend Jimmy Dimora be sentenced to at least 22 years in prison". Cleveland Plain Dealer. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
- ^ Dealer staff, Plain (4 November 2009). "Cuyahoga County votes to change government".
- ^ "Cuyahoga County Charter". Archived from the original on 2013-05-16. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
- ^ a b Gomez, Henry J. (3 November 2010). "Lakewood Mayor Ed FitzGerald beats Matt Dolan to win race to be first Cuyahoga County executive".
- ^ Cetina, Judith G. "Cuyahoga County Government". Case Western Reserve University. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
- ^ Gomez, Henry J. (24 April 2013). "Ed FitzGerald kicks off his long-planned bid for governor by banking on his Cuyahoga County base".
- ^ "Ed FitzGerald lost his own precinct and city in governor's race against John Kasich". 6 November 2014.
- ^ Tobias, Andrew J. (November 5, 2014). "Armond Budish defeats Jack Schron in Cuyahoga County executive race". Cleveland.com. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ Astolfi, Courtney (November 7, 2018). "Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish, Council President Dan Brady cruise to reelection". Cleveland.com. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ Wu, Annie (November 16, 2021). "Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish will not seek reelection to a third term". ideastream. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ Carey, Tyler (May 4, 2022). "Democrat Chris Ronayne, Republican Lee Weingart to face off in Cuyahoga County executive election". WKYC. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ "Chris Ronayne declares victory in Cuyahoga County executive race". Ideastream. November 8, 2022. Retrieved November 9, 2022.