He jogged miles in the Memorial Day Parade in Wheelersburg and the Labor Day Parade in Portsmouth. Friends and family kept up as well as they could, wearing his T-shirts. He traversed up and down the midway at the county fair, shaking hands with all he could.

It all paid off for Steve Mowery in Tuesday’s general election, where he defeated veteran attorney James Scott Smith in the race to replace Municipal Court Judge Richard Schisler, who is retiring at the end of the year.

The final tally showed:

• Mowery — 11,291

• Smith — 7,665

It’s designated Portsmouth Municipal Court but its jurisdiction covers all of Scioto County.

“I’ve had a lot of blessings, win or lose, but having the early lead feels good,” Mowery said shortly after 9 p.m. as his lead over Smith continued to mount. “Scott ran a good campaign.”

Mowery, 56, graduated from Valley High School, earned his undergraduate degree at Ohio State University and his law degree from the University of Kentucky Law School.

He will be the first Democrat judge in Scioto County for quite a number of years.

He has represented thousands of clients in his 30 years of practicing law.

“I represented a lot of people and I think I helped a lot of people. I want to do that as a judge. It’s a new challenge and gives me an opportunity to do something good for the community. I’m looking forward to it.”

He said he plans to do all within his power to help with the drug problem, which takes up so much of the court’s time.

“One guy can’t make a dent in it. A judge hammering a drug user or peddler standing before him won’t do it. It will take a concerted effort on the part of all of us working together.

“No Judge of the Portsmouth Municipal Court is going to solve the problems of drug and child abuse; that is one cog in the wheel. There are limitations in what one person can do. He must work with other people and other agencies — think outside the box. I think good things can happen, and I’m excited about an opportunity to try and do that.”

Mowery said he heard not too long ago that there was a conference held in the city by pharmaceutical reps “... about our drug problem in the county. I didn’t hear anything about it. That was amazing. The courts, the parents, law enforcement, lawyers who deal with it — all should have known about it. We know who the pill pushers are. We need to take it back. All of us working together can make a difference”

The new judge-elect said he will make certain victims of crime get their just due. “Anyone aggrieved by theft, a bad check, or anything that causes a person damage, we will see that they get restitution, and that the people who are convicted pay for their crimes,” Smith said.

G. SAM PIATT can be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 236.