Columbiana County Municipal Court Judge Katelyn Dickey, who is running next year as a Republican for a seat on the Youngstown-based 7th District Court of Appeals, made a $200,000 personal contribution to that campaign.

“Running for this seat across eight different counties is going to take a lot of effort and resources, but I’m committed to ensuring a successful campaign,” Dickey said.

The appeals seat is currently held by Democrat David A. D’Apolito of Boardman, who is expected to seek re-election though he has been approached by Republicans to switch political parties. D’Apolito couldn’t be reached Friday to comment.

Dickey, of Lisbon, spent about $200,000 — mostly her own money — in the May 2019 primary for her current judicial seat, narrowly beating Vito Abruzzino, the county Republican Party’s endorsed candidate.

She then spent another $120,000 — again, mostly her own money — in the general election to beat Democrat K. Bret Apple, a former Columbiana County Court judge, by 18 percent.

The appeals court has jurisdiction over Mahoning, Columbiana, Belmont, Carroll, Harrison, Jefferson, Monroe and Noble counties. Mahoning is by far the most populous county in the district and three of the four sitting judges reside there.

Judges are prohibited from accepting or receiving campaign contributions until 180 days before the primary election under the Ohio Rules of Judicial Conduct. The 2024 primary is currently scheduled for March 19.

But judicial candidates are allowed to make their own personal contributions to their campaign committees starting 270 days before the primary.

In addition to Dickey, Mary DeGenaro, a former Ohio Supreme Court justice who served 17 years on the appeals bench, plans to run in next year’s Republican primary for the appeals seat.

DeGenaro of Poland is currently the state auditor’s chief legal counsel.

DeGenaro in 2000 became the first Republican in 

24 years to win a seat on the 7th District Court of Appeals. She won two other six-year terms before leaving in January 2018 after John Kasich, then the governor, appointed her to an open spot on the state Supreme Court. DeGenaro lost the November 2018 election for a full six-year term to Democrat Melody Stewart.

Republican Kathleen Bartlett was appointed by Kasich to replace DeGenaro on the appeals bench. D’Apolito, who was a Mahoning County Court judge for 18 years, defeated Bartlett by 2.2 percent in the November 2018 election for a six-year term.

The court has two Republican members and two Democratic members.

The district has become more Republican in recent years and with a law in place, that began with the 2020 election, requiring all appeals court and Supreme Court candidates have their party affiliation identified on the general election ballot.

In last year’s election for an appeals court seat, Republican Mark A. Hanni, who had run unsuccessfully for judicial seats, beat Democrat Gene Donofrio, a 30-year incumbent. Running as a Democrat in 2012, Hanni lost by 4.4 percent to DeGenaro.

The court’s two other judges are: Republican Carol Ann Robb, who can’t run for re-election in 2026 because of the state’s age limit for judges; and Democrat Cheryl Waite, who may not seek another term on the court that year.