YOUNGSTOWN — Several judicial seats are up for grabs in November at the county and state level.

Those include two Mahoning County Common Pleas Court seats, Mahoning County’s Domestic Relations Court, and a seat on Ohio’s 7th District Court of Appeals in Youngstown.

The latter arguably was the most hotly contested and now a winner has been determined.

Mark Hanni will serve another six years on the 7th District Court of Appeals instead of ending his career in 2028.

According to unofficial results from the Ohio Secretary of State’s website, Hanni defeated the chief of Poland’s Western Reserve Joint Fire District, David “Chip” Comstock for the appellate court seat being vacated by retiring Judge Cheryl Waite.

As of 9:30 p.m., the results showed Hanni as the presumptive winner by a margin of about 54% to 46%, in one of only three contested primaries for appellate court judges, all between Republicans.

The 7th District hears cases involving Mahoning, Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Jefferson, Monroe and Noble Counties.

Hanni was elected to the 7th District in 2022, defeating Judge Gene Donofrio in a special election, but cannot seek reelection to his current seat in 2028 because of age restrictions. By running for Waite’s seat, he wins another six years, giving him four more years on the appeals court panel than if he had stayed in his current seat.

Hanni issued a news release hours before results were released.

“I feel deeply blessed to have had the opportunity to participate in this election and to stand before the people of Ohio representing my values openly and honestly,” he said. “We are living in a time of spiritual warfare. This is not just a battle between Republicans and Democrats. Increasingly, this is a battle between good and evil. The people are hungry for leaders who are willing to represent their real values publicly instead of hiding behind carefully crafted talking points and political language.”

Hanni is the son of former Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairman Don Hanni Jr. Mark Hanni has said he became a Republican in 2016.

He has been something of a lightning rod for negative press attention in recent weeks.

Hanni drew criticism for his campaign’s yard signs, which emphasize his support for President Donald Trump and appear to conflate the controversial Commander-in-Chief with the other face on the sign, Jesus Christ.

In April, Tod Latell, a former Trumbull recorder, sued Hanni; his wife, Trumbull County Recorder Dawn Zinni-Hanni; and Trumbull County in federal court over allegations of civil conspiracy, defamation, abuse of political authority or influence and internal infliction of emotional distress.

On April 11, Hanni crashed his Cadillac Escalade into a Bridgeport fast-food restaurant, causing significant damage to the building’s interior and exterior. He was not cited for the incident.

Hanni recently filed a motion requesting to intervene in a federal case by a Democratic Ohio Supreme Court justice that seeks to overturn a 2021 state law requiring party affiliation for appeals court and Ohio Supreme Court candidates.

Hanni praised his opponent as well.

“I also want to tip my hat to my opponent, Chip Comstock, who worked hard and ran an aggressive campaign. Many fraternal firemen from communities up and down the Ohio River stood up and were counted for Chip Comstock, and I respect them for it,” he said.

Comstock has been the Western Reserve Joint Fire District chief since June 1, 1992, and has worked for the Bonezzi Switzer Polito and Perry law firm since Jan, 1, 2016. He was with Comstock, Springer & Wilson from 1988 to 2015.

Comstock stated in his campaign materials that his goal was to restore “public trust in the independence and integrity of the court as an equal but separate third branch of government under the United States and Ohio constitutions.”

Katherine Rudzik, also of Poland, the Mahoning County Clerk of Courts’ chief deputy clerk, who is a registered Republican, filed in February to run as a write-in candidate in the Democrat primary for the seat. The Secretary of State’s website stated that it would not be posting results for write-in candidates on election night. As the only Democratic candidate for the appeals seat, Rudzik’s name will appear on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.