Judge’s supporter is now his opponent

Less than a year ago, lawyer Jeff Mackey contributed $300 to the reelection campaign of Franklin County Probate Court Judge Robert G. Montgomery.

Now, he’s become Montgomery’s opponent.

The county Board of Elections on Aug. 17 certified Mackey for the ballot in place of Zach Space, who withdrew as the Democratic candidate for the Probate Court judgeship in a July 30 letter to the board.

The county’s Democratic Party executive committee gave Mackey, 64, its endorsement after the withdrawal of Space, a former congressman from Dover in eastern Ohio.

Despite being a registered Democrat, Mackey has served on the campaign finance committee for Montgomery, a Republican, and wrote a $300 check to the incumbent’s campaign last September.

The contribution is listed in Montgomery’s annual campaign finance report, filed in January with the county Board of Elections.

Asked Tuesday by The Dispatch how he went from a Montgomery supporter to his foe in the Nov. 3 general election, Mackey replied: “I really don’t have a comment on that.”

Montgomery, 54, called Mackey’s candidacy against him “surprising and perplexing.”

He said Mackey hasn’t even formally withdrawn from his campaign committee.

“He hasn’t reached out to me,” Montgomery

told The Dispatch on Tuesday.

Judicial races are considered nonpartisan in Ohio, but political parties endorse and campaign for candidates.

This isn’t the first time that Mackey has expressed interest in the Probate Court job. In 2010, he was one of three finalists for a vacancy on the bench, which eventually went to Alan Acker through an appointment by then-democratic Gov. Ted Strickland.

Montgomery defeated Acker in the November 2010 general election for the right to complete the unexpired term. Montgomery was reelected without opposition in November 2014 to a full sixyear term.

By law, Montgomery serves as the administrative judge of the Franklin County Common Pleas Courts Probate Division and as the clerk of his own court.

Mackey lost a four-way Democratic primary race in 2016 for the 25th Ohio House District. He also was among a dozen finalists for an appointment to fill a vacancy on Columbus City Council in 2014.

Mackey said he retired a year ago as a partner in a Westerville law firm, but he remains an active, licensed lawyer who says his 38 years of experience in the Probate Court would make him a good judge.

The Probate judge candidate, whose full name is Jeffrey D. Mackey and who has used his full name on the ballot in previous campaigns, is not to be confused with another Jeff Mackey, who works as manager of petitions and filings for the Franklin County Board of Elections. jfutty@dispatch.com @johnfutty