Incumbent Lorain Court Clerk faces Republican challenger

KYRIECE BROOKS Age: 31 Party: Republican Education: Graduated from Lorain High School; degree in theology Job history: Student services at a public charter school; director/founder of Lorain Stop the Violence; part of many other organizations. Website: Facebook, KyrieceBrooks4clerk.com TED KALO Age: 63 Party: DemocraticEducation: Graduate of Lorain Admiral King; attended Cleveland State University and Lorain County Community CollegeFamily: Married to Wendy (Strickler); five children, 10 grandchildren, 3 dogs and a cat.Job history: Local 860 Laborer; President of Ted's Floors in Lorain; 14 years as a Lorain County commissioner; 6.75 years as Lorain Municipal Clerk of Court.Website: Ted Kalo for Clerk of Courts on Facebook LORAIN — A Republican is challenging the incumbent Lorain Municipal Clerk of Courts this November. Incumbent clerk Ted Kalo, a Democrat, faces Kyriece Brooks, chair of the Lorain/Sheffield Republican Area Committee. The winner will serve a six-year term as head of the Lorain Municipal Courts, serving the cities of Lorain and Sheffield Lake plus Sheffield Township. What makes you the best candidate for the position? BROOKS: People should vote for me because we have a historic opportunity to effect transformative change. We have a chance to bring about meaningful reform, and if not now, then when? I have been a vocal advocate for this community since 2013 and have become a symbol of the change I wish to see, with a desire to implement that change throughout the entire community. I firmly believe that the people deserve a representative who genuinely prioritizes their interests and the needs of their families. KALO: Since taking office in 2019, I have balanced the books, which were considered unauditable due to a bad computer system. We have replaced the bad system with a new one and fixed all of the financial issues along with recovering over $675,000.00 in wrong disbursements. We have improved our collection systems to bring in more revenue. We are in compliance with all federal and state agencies. We offer civil and criminal e-filing to expedite the court process. We have digitized all of the cases prior to 1998 and have them available online along with over 100,000 cases after 1998. What is the biggest challenge facing the Lorain Municipal Court and how would you address it? BROOKS: Here are some of the things that I feel like need to be addressed: Smarter collections — fair and modern access to justice, as outdated collection practices make life harder. I will lead to reforms balancing accountability and compassion, including modern payment options like secure online and mobile systems, reminder notices in English and Spanish, flexible payment plans and community workshops to explain fines and options in plain language to ensure compliance without trapping people in debt cycles. A technology plan will bring the office into the 21st century, including social media outreach and multilingual access to documents and services. KALO: The most time-consuming part of the clerk of court's job that takes a lot of effort is keeping up with ever-changing mandates from the Supreme Court and the state Legislature. We are required to keep all records in order per the mandates while also making sure we respect the rights of victims, defendants and plaintiffs. — Carissa Woytach