What does a YES vote on Cuyahoga County Issue 13 mean?

Cuyahoga County's Director of Law would be the primary legal representative on labor, employment, public records, risk management and non-litigation contracts, and would give legal advice to county officials, but could not handle litigation unless referred by the Prosecuting Attorney.

What does a NO vote on Cuyahoga County Issue 13 mean?

The charter's description of the Director of Law's powers and duties would not change.

Who would represent the County in court?

The Prosecuting Attorney. The Director of Law could not prosecute, defend, appear in court or otherwise handle litigation for the County.

Could officials still ask the Prosecutor for advice?

Yes. The amendment says nothing prohibits the Executive, Council or other entities from seeking or obtaining advice from the Prosecuting Attorney.

Are independently elected officials like the Sheriff covered?

Ideastream reports the Law Director's advisory role covers offices that serve at the pleasure of the Executive or Council, not independently positioned officials such as the sheriff.

How many votes does Cuyahoga County Issue 13 need to pass?

A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.

Should I vote yes or no on Cuyahoga County Issue 13?

SpectrumVote doesn't endorse anyone or tell you how to vote. Read what a YES and a NO vote each do, and the official text, then decide based on what you want to happen.

The general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Early voting and mail-ballot deadlines vary by state; check your state or county election office.

Cuyahoga County Issue 13 — County of Cuyahoga: Proposed Charter Amendment

Ballot measure · November 3, 2026

What it does: Shall Article V, Section 5.06 of the Charter of the County of Cuyahoga be amended to provide that the Director of Law shall provide primary legal representation on labor negotiations, grievances and arbitrations, non-litigation related employment matters, public records matters, risk management functions and activities, and non-litigation related contracts, agreements, debt issuance documents, memoranda of understanding, purchase orders, and other legal instruments entered into by the County Executive on behalf of Cuyahoga County; that the powers and duties of the Director of Law shall include giving written opinions and other legal advice to the Executive, County Council, officers, departments, directors, boards, agencies, commissions, and authorities appointed or established under the various Articles of the Charter, and other County entities whose chief executive officers serve at the pleasure of the County Executive or County Council; that nothing prohibits the County Executive, County Council or other entities established by Charter, Council, or general law, from seeking or obtaining advice from the Prosecuting Attorney; that this Section 5.06 shall not in any way limit the powers and duties of the Prosecuting Attorney as set forth in Section 4.01 and general law; and that in no event shall the Director of Law prosecute, defend, appear in court, or otherwise handle any action in any litigation or litigation-related proceedings on behalf of the County or any of its entities, unless referred to the Law Director by the Prosecuting Attorney?
A YES vote means: Cuyahoga County's Director of Law would be the primary legal representative on labor, employment, public records, risk management and non-litigation contracts, and would give legal advice to county officials, but could not handle litigation unless referred by the Prosecuting Attorney.
A NO vote means: The charter's description of the Director of Law's powers and duties would not change.
Needed to pass: A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.
Left–right lean: Not a left–right issue: a procedural or local question that liberals and conservatives don't typically split on (AI read of the official ballot summary).

The YES and NO lines are SpectrumVote's plain-language reading of the official text above; the official text is what you vote on.

Official text: source

Explained

Today

Section 5.06 of the Charter says only that the Director of Law, appointed by the County Executive, is the legal advisor to and representative of the County Executive and County Council; Section 4.01 leaves the elected Prosecuting Attorney's duties to state law.
Since the 2010 county reform, informal agreements and memorandums of understanding have divided legal work between the two offices. Ideastream reports Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost issued an opinion that such delegations were not defensible in court without a charter amendment.

If it passes

The Director of Law would provide primary legal representation on labor negotiations, grievances and arbitrations, non-litigation employment matters, public records, risk management, and non-litigation contracts, agreements, debt documents and other legal instruments entered into by the County Executive.
The Director of Law would give written opinions and legal advice to the Executive, Council and Charter-created offices and entities whose leaders serve at the pleasure of the Executive or Council.
The Director of Law could not handle any litigation for the County; litigation stays with the Prosecuting Attorney, whose powers under Section 4.01 and state law would not be limited.
County officials and entities could still seek advice from the Prosecuting Attorney.

Who would notice

The County's Law Department and Prosecutor's Office and the county officials and agencies they advise. It does not change any tax.

How it got here

County Council voted 8–0 on September 1, 2026 to send it to the ballot, after a dispute between Prosecutor Mike O'Malley and the Executive's law department over who handles which legal matters. Ideastream reports Law Director Richard Manoloff said the final version addressed his department's concerns about an earlier draft.

In the news

Cuyahoga County approves truce on legal matters between Ronayne, O'Malley · Ideastream Public Media, 2026-09-01

Written by SpectrumVote from 4 linked sources (1, 2, 3, 4). Arguments are each side's own, not ours; the official text is what you vote on.

Background

This amendment was proposed by County Executive Chris Ronayne through Resolution No. R2026-0182, which addresses the powers and duties of the Prosecuting Attorney and the Director of Law, according to County Council's minutes.

On August 4, 2026, a motion to adopt R2026-0182 failed on a 5–6 roll-call vote (Houser, Simon, Kelly, Gallagher and Schleper yes; Turner, Sweeney, Casselberry, Conwell, Jones and Miller no), according to the minutes.

At a special meeting on September 1, 2026, Council accepted a substitute version limited to Section 5.06 and adopted it by roll-call vote with Councilmembers Houser, Sweeney, Casselberry, Conwell, Jones, Turner and Miller voting yes and none voting no; Councilmembers Kelly, Schleper and Simon were absent.

Signal Cleveland reported in August that Council President Dale Miller said the proposal could return after Prosecutor Michael O'Malley and County Executive Ronayne resolved their differences.

Put on the ballot by Cuyahoga County Council, 7–0 roll-call vote (3 absent), September 1, 2026 special meeting (Resolution No. R2026-0182, as substituted).

From official source 1, official source 2, official source 3.

In the news

Here's what's on the Cuyahoga County November ballot: tax hikes and charter amendments · Signal Cleveland, 2026-08-06

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Quick answers

What does a YES vote on Cuyahoga County Issue 13 mean?: Cuyahoga County's Director of Law would be the primary legal representative on labor, employment, public records, risk management and non-litigation contracts, and would give legal advice to county officials, but could not handle litigation unless referred by the Prosecuting Attorney.
What does a NO vote on Cuyahoga County Issue 13 mean?: The charter's description of the Director of Law's powers and duties would not change.
Who would represent the County in court?: The Prosecuting Attorney. The Director of Law could not prosecute, defend, appear in court or otherwise handle litigation for the County.
Could officials still ask the Prosecutor for advice?: Yes. The amendment says nothing prohibits the Executive, Council or other entities from seeking or obtaining advice from the Prosecuting Attorney.
Are independently elected officials like the Sheriff covered?: Ideastream reports the Law Director's advisory role covers offices that serve at the pleasure of the Executive or Council, not independently positioned officials such as the sheriff.
How many votes does Cuyahoga County Issue 13 need to pass?: A simple majority: more than half of the YES and NO votes on this measure must be YES. Leaving it blank doesn't count either way.
Should I vote yes or no on Cuyahoga County Issue 13?: SpectrumVote doesn't endorse anyone or tell you how to vote. Read what a YES and a NO vote each do, and the official text, then decide based on what you want to happen.
When is the vote?: The general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Early voting and mail-ballot deadlines vary by state; check your state or county election office.

Not sure how to decide? Read our nonpartisan guide to the Cuyahoga County ballot.

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