Smalls, Sylvain compete for six-year Montgomery County Juvenile Court judgeship

Montgomery County voters will select a judge for a six-year term on the Common Pleas Court Juvenile Division, with Hope Smalls and Nicholas Sylvain on the November 2026 ballot. The Dayton-based court hears delinquency, child abuse and neglect, child support, paternity and related cases.

Smalls, 38, traced her interest in children and families to a University of Dayton classroom, where she focused on human rights and children's rights. She earned a law degree from Ohio Northern University and worked as a court appointed special advocate, later joining the Montgomery County prosecutor's office as an assistant prosecuting attorney in the child protection unit before moving to the adult felony docket.

She subsequently served as a Dayton assistant city prosecutor and was appointed a juvenile court magistrate in November 2019, urged to apply by retired Judge Julie Bruns. She presided mainly over custody matters and also handled delinquency cases and the family treatment court docket. This is her first campaign; she returned to the prosecutor's office in June and said she was told she needed to resign because of her opponent's appointment the prior month.

She contends her experience sets her apart.

Sylvain, 57, was appointed to the bench in May by Gov. Mike DeWine, filling the seat vacated when Bruns resigned. He previously was a magistrate in the Common Pleas Domestic Relations Division. According to DeWine's office, his career began in 1991 as a legal intern at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, followed by work in Virginia's Norfolk Circuit Court in 1992 and the William & Mary law clinic in 1993.

He worked for the county prosecutor's office from 1993 to 2002 in roles including senior trial attorney in the criminal division. He holds a 1995 University of Dayton chemical engineering degree and a 1993 law degree from William & Mary. In an email interview he said he would consult community and school officials, personally handle serious delinquency and complex custody cases, and expand the court's Citizen Services program.