Son of a U.S. Army Chaplain and a nurse who worked closely with churches on health care needs, conservative Republican Matt Donahue is ready to be our next Judge. His career as a tough on crime prosecutor and his deeply held conservative principles of faith, freedom, and family make him our best choice.

As a felony level criminal prosecutor, Matt has prosecuted or supervised prosecutions in over 55 counties across Ohio including cases against countless killers, drug dealers, sex offenders, and corrupt politicians. He’s worked on multiple death penalty cases. For his work as a prosecutor, Matt received awards from the FBI and the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association.

Matt earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Dayton School of Law, where he earned the “highest grade” award in the Criminal Law Clinic. In a forerunner of his future work in Courts of Appeals, he volunteered in a Court of Appeals program where he helped those who couldn’t afford an attorney protect their appeals rights.

After law school Matt was hired as an assistant prosecutor in Meigs County, Ohio where he handled all levels of criminal matters from minor misdemeanor traffic tickets to the death penalty. Matt represented several county offices and handled many cases in Appeals Court, including handling a case at the Ohio Supreme Court -- all of which prepares him well to be a Court of Appeals Judge.

After prosecuting cases in one county, Matt was appointed as an Associate Assistant Attorney General in the Ohio Attorney General’s Special Prosecutions Section. In this high profile role, he prosecuted pill mills and developed first of its kind prosecution and investigation strategies for dangerous synthetic drugs like K2 and bath salts. His work led him to be named Section Chief of that section. In this leadership position, he managed the work of nearly a dozen trial prosecutors on cases in areas such as public corruption, homicide, sexual assault, and drug trafficking.

Matt and his team of experienced prosecutors handled cases including the prosecution of a crooked state legislator and a corrupt sheriff. Other cases include multiple crimes against children; several cold-case homicide prosecutions (including the oldest successful cold case prosecution of the murder of a police officer in U.S. history), and heroin trafficking rings. Matt was one of the special prosecutors in the Pike County murder cases, becoming involved just hours after the gruesome murders were discovered. His work in the Attorney General’s Office led to him receiving multiple awards.

Following that, Matt was named Chief Legal Counsel to the Governor. In addition to giving executive branch legal advice and supervising dozens of other attorneys, one of his most cherished memories was advising on Ohio’s pro-life “Heartbeat Bill” and being present when it was signed into law.

ISSUES IMPORTANT TO MATT

As a gun owner and Life Member of the NRA, Matt enjoys spending time on the gun range with his dad.

His conservative legal philosophy led him to become a member of the Federalist Society, the national organization of conservative lawyers who have advised President Trump on his U.S Supreme Court appointments.

While he is firmly committed to ruling on cases based on the law and Constitution, Matt is personally pro-life and believes life begins at conception.

Matt is a strong defender of law enforcement and his work as a death penalty prosecutor has emboldened his support for the death penalty.

EARLY LIFE

His childhood in Ohio was the classic American story. Matt earned varsity letters in three sports – cross country, track, and swimming – and he went on to compete in state competition. Active in church, Matt was elected state president of his church denomination’s youth group. And Matt earned scouting’s highest honor, becoming an Eagle Scout and elected member of the prestigious Order of the Arrow, being elected as lodge chief and being elected to “vigil honor.”

Matt’s hard work ethic was forged early on, becoming a paper boy in 7th grade and then working as a lifeguard for years thereafter.

Matt chose to attend a college connected to his Christian faith -- Bethany College -- where he graduated with honors. In college, he continued to be a varsity athlete, achieving many honors including an individual conference championship. In addition to his commitment to academics and athletics, he sought to serve. He took all the certifications to become a volunteer firefighter and EMT and spent his entire college tenure taking emergency calls and helping others. Matt was also elected his college freshman class president. Other honors including serving as a Resident Assistant in his dormitory, serving in student government, and being named to multiple academic honor societies.

FAMILY LIFE

Matt is married to the love of his life Jill, and together they have two children. Jill is a former award-winning TV news reporter, having worked at WFMD in Mansfield, WTOV in Steubenville, and WHIO in Dayton.

Matt and Jill have lived in Fairfield County for the last 10 years and regularly attend church in Canal Winchester.