The Tristate’s Most Influential People
From business leaders to politicians, those in power know that it is work to get to the top and a struggle to stay there. Challenges from opponents can present themselves at any time and there’s always the next test, the next task, the next obstacle. Cincy’s 21st annual Power 100 list recognizes those people who hold and use the most clout to benefit the region.
Compiled by David Holthaus & the Editors
1. Joe Burrow 
Cincinnati Bengals Quarterback
Burrow is a once-in-a-franchise leader who has nearly single-handedly raised the value and prospects of a sports franchise worth billions. He took the Bengals to the Super Bowl in 2022, boosting the self-image of an entire metropolitan region. His value was never more apparent than when an injury sidelined him for most of the 2025 season and the team floundered without his on-the-field leadership. He has outsized influence on the personnel decisions of the family-run Bengals. Burrow’s family foundation has raised millions to support its mission of hunger relief and its focus on youth mental health.
2. Steve Leeper
President & CEO of Center City Development Corp. (3CDC)
Leeper’s 20-year tenure as CEO of 3CDC has resulted in $2 billion in investment in Cincinnati’s urban core, including the restoration of Music Hall and Memorial Hall, the transformation of Washington Park, the renovation of Fountain Square and hundreds of apartments and condominiums in downtown and Over-the-Rhine. 3CDC’s latest projects include the renovation of the downtown convention center and the development of the surrounding “convention district.”
3. John Barrett
Chairman, President and CEO of Western & Southern Financial Group
Under Barrett’s leadership, Western & Southern Financial Group grew into a national financial services powerhouse with revenue of more than $7 billion. He has been a longtime force in downtown real estate, particularly in its southeast quadrant, where the company has purchased the Masonic Center on Fifth Street, a property that includes the Taft Theatre.
From business leaders to politicians, those in power know that it is work to get to the top and a struggle to stay there. Challenges from opponents can present themselves at any time and there’s always the next test, the next task, the next obstacle. Cincy’s 21st annual Power 100 list recognizes those people who hold and use the most clout to benefit the region.
4. S. Craig Lindner and Carl Lindner III
Co-CEOS of American Financial Group
Carl Lindner III and his brother, Craig, are co-CEOs of the financial giant American Financial Group, which employs nearly 9,000 people across the country. Their influence extends well beyond the company to causes such as education, health care and youth sports. Carl is also a co-founder and co-CEO of FC Cincinnati while Craig has been instrumental in advancing research and mental health care at the Lindner Center of HOPE.
5. H. Lawrence Culp
Chairman & CEO of GE Aerospace
With General Electric in a long-term slump, its board turned to GE chief executive Culp, whose answer was to break up the industrial conglomerate. That effort resulted in the creation of GE Aerospace as a standalone company headquartered in Evendale. When it launched, it immediately became Cincinnati’s third-largest business. The company has plans to invest nearly $1 billion in its U.S. factories and that investment includes more than $100 million dedicated to its external suppliers, many of which are located in Greater Cincinnati.
6. Aftab Pureval
Mayor of Cincinnati
Just re-elected to his second and final term as Cincinnati’s mayor, Pureval will have four more years to pursue his agenda and manage the city’s major issues, such as affordable housing, aging infrastructure and fear of crime. Pureval’s proposal to sell the Cincinnati-owned railroad was approved by city voters, and the proceeds will bring in tens of millions in new money to be dedicated to infrastructure.
7. Bill Butler
Corporex Cos. CEO, Chairman & Founder
The company Butler started in 1965, Corporex, is credited with transforming Covington and its neighboring river cities. After years of planning, Butler turned his attention to Newport to build Ovation, a 25-acre development at the confluence of the Ohio and Licking rivers that features a music venue, office buildings, residences, a hotel and more. Corporex controls well over $1 billion in real estate investments in more than a dozen markets across the United States.
8. Bob Castellini
Cincinnati Reds Principal Owner, President & CEO; Castellini Co. Chairman
As the principal owner of the Cincinnati Reds for 20 years, Castellini is the keeper of one of the city’s most identifiable and nationally recognized organizations. Installing his son Phil as president and CEO maintains the family’s control, with the elder Castellini retaining responsibility of overall business and baseball operations.
9. Laura Brunner
President & CEO of The Port
As its president and CEO, Brunner has focused the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority (The Port) on revitalizing neighborhoods and creating conditions for economic growth and new jobs. She gained national recognition when she led the effort to acquire nearly 200 single-family homes from an out-of-town landlord to support home ownership in Hamilton County.
10. Jeff Berding
Co-CEO of FC Cincinnati
A former Cincinnati City Council member and senior executive with the Cincinnati Bengals, Berding co-founded FC Cincinnati, an enterprise that has transformed the sports landscape in Cincinnati, as well as the geographic landscape of the West End and neighboring Over-the-Rhine and Downtown. A $330 million mixed-use development next to the stadium is now underway, promising even more change to the region.
Those who aren’t a part of the Top 10 are still important players in town. Below are the remaining 90, sorted by organization type.
Business
Adam Bortz
Towne Properties CEO
Archie Brown
First Financial Bancorp president & CEO
Mike Brown
Cincinnati Bengals owner & president
Katie Brown Blackburn
Cincinnati Bengals executive vice president
Julie Calvert
Visit Cincy president & CEO
Phil Castellini
Cincinnati Reds president & CEO
Brent Cooper
Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce president & CEO
Alfonso Cornejo
Hispanic Chamber Cincinnati USA president
Brendon Cull
Cincinnati Regional Chamber president & CEO
Bill Cunningham
WLW-AM radio talk-show host
Jocile Ehrlich
Better Business Bureau CEO; BBB Center for Ethics CEO
Alan Fershtman
KMK Law managing partner
Leigh Fox
altafiber president & CEO
Adam Hall
FBT Gibbons co-managing partner
Gary Heiman
Standard Textile Inc. chairman & CEO
Stephen L. Hightower
Hightowers Petroleum Co. president & CEO
Shailesh Jejurikar 
Procter & Gamble president & CEO
Eric H. Kearney
Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky African-American Chamber of Commerce president & CEO; Ohio Chamber of Commerce director of diversity, equity
and inclusion
Larry Krauter
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport CEO
Gary Lindgren
Cincinnati Business Committee president
Joshua A. Lorentz
Dinsmore managing partner & chairman of executive committee and board of directors
Joy Lytle
Clermont Chamber of Commerce president & CEO
Milen Mahadevan
84.51° president & CEO
Molly North
Merus CEO
Jane Peterson
Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Ohio president
Maribeth S. Rahe
Fort Washington Investment Advisors president & CEO
Carl Satterwhite
RCF Group president & owner
Todd M. Schneider
Cintas Corp. president, CEO & director
Timothy N. Spence
Fifth Third Bancorp president & CEO
Amy B. Spiller
Duke Energy Ohio and Kentucky president
Warren Weber
PNC Bank regional president Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky
Tom Williams
North American Properties president & CEO
James M. Zimmerman
Taft Law partner-in-charge Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky
Education
Joseph Chillo
Thomas More University president
Gregory Crawford
Miami University president
Fernando Figueroa
Gateway Community & Technical College president & CEO
Colleen M. Hanycz
Xavier University president
Shauna Murphy
Cincinnati Public Schools superintendent
Neville Pinto
University of Cincinnati president
Monica Posey
Cincinnati State Technical & Community College president
Cady Short-Thompson
Northern Kentucky University president
Harry Snyder
Great Oaks Career Campuses president & CEO
H. James Williams
Mount St. Joseph University president
Government and Politics
Cindy Abrams
Ohio House District 29 representative
Warren Davidson
U.S. House Ohio’s 8th District representative
Denise Driehaus
Hamilton County commissioner
Dani Isaacsohn
Ohio House District 24 representative; House minority whip
Greg Kesterman
Hamilton County Public Health commissioner
Kris Knochelmann
Kenton County judge executive
Greg Landsman
U.S. House Ohio’s 1st District representative
Alex Linser
Hamilton County Democratic Party chair
Sheryl Long
Cincinnati city manager
Thomas Massie
U.S. House Kentucky’s 4th District representative
Charmaine McGuffey
Hamilton County sheriff
Jessica Miranda
Hamilton County auditor
Russell Mock
Hamilton County Republican Party chairman
Gary Moore
Boone County judge executive
Steve Pendery
Campbell County judge executive
Connie Pillich
Hamilton County prosecutor
Mark R. Policinski
Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana (OKI) Regional Council of Governments CEO
Alicia Reece
Hamilton County commissioner
T.C. Rogers
Butler County commissioner
Dr. Lakshmi Kode Sammarco
Hamilton County coroner
Stephanie Summerow Dumas
Hamilton County commissioner
Dave Taylor
U.S. House Ohio’s 2nd District representative
Cecil Thomas
Ohio House District 25 representative
Alex Triantafilou
Ohio Republican Party chairman
Nonprofits
Mark C. Clement
TriHealth president & CEO
Garren Colvin
St. Elizabeth Healthcare president & CEO
Steve Davis
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center president & CEO
Harry & Linda Fath
Real estate owners & philanthropists
Nancy Grayson
Horizon Community Foundation president & CEO
Deborah Hayes
The Christ Hospital Health Network president & CEO
Joe Huber
Cincinnati Development Fund president & CEO
The Most Rev. John C. Iffert
Diocese of Covington bishop
Alecia Kintner
ArtsWave president & CEO
Kimm Lauterbach
REDI Cincinnati president & CEO
Jill Miller
Bethesda Inc. president & CEO
Jorge Perez
YMCA of Greater Cincinnati president & CEO
Elizabeth Pierce
Cincinnati Museum Center president & CEO
Matthew Randazzo
Greater Cincinnati Foundation president & CEO
Cory Shaw
UC Health president & CEO
Rickell Howard Smith
YWCA of Greater Cincinnati president & CEO
John Starcher
Bon Secours Mercy Health CEO
Brian Tome
Crossroads Church founder & senior pastor
Moira Weir
United Way of Greater Cincinnati president & CEO
Robert McGrath
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra president & CEO
The Most Rev. Robert G. Casey
Archdiocese of Cincinnati archbishop
Paula Brehm-Heeger
Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County director
Kristen Schlotman
Film Cincinnati president & CEO
