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OHIO – There is confusion about what Issue 1 on Ohio’s November ballot is and how it would effect voters.
Issue 1 proposes to make changes to how maps are drawn for congressional and Statehouse districts.
You can read the full amendment here:
Supporters of Issue 1 want voters to vote yes to stop gerrymandering. But what is gerrymandering?
According to Brittanica.com, gerrymandering is “the practice of drawing the boundaries of electoral districts in a way that gives one political party an unfair advantage over its rivals (political or partisan gerrymandering) or that dilutes the voting power of members of ethnic or linguistic minority groups (racial gerrymandering).”
The term was derived from from the name of 19th century Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry who enacted a law that redrew state senatorial districts to favor one political party over the other.
According to the Columbus Dispatch, “redistricting happens every 10 years after the U.S. Census is complete. New population data determine how many seats each state gets in the U.S. House of Representatives. Ohio currently has 15 congressional seats, down from a high of 24 from 1963 to 1973.”
However, voting on stopping gerrymandering in Ohio has happened twice in recent years, in 2015 and in 2018, both times seeing voters overwhelmingly approve each measure, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
A new commission, the Ohio Redistricting Commission, was born out of these votes. It is made up of a “seven-member panel of three statewide elected officials (governor, auditor and secretary of state) and four lawmakers who would draw state House and Senate districts and help with congressional districts,” according to the Columbus Dispatch.
Committee members did not work together, according to the Columbus Dispatch, and instead made up their own redistricting plans along Republican and Democratic party lines by 2020. Court battles ensued with statehouse map issues going to the Ohio Supreme Court.
Former Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor (R) and a group called Citizens Not Politicians have proposed a different way to draw up Ohio’s districts and this proposal is Issue 1.
According to the Columbus Dispatch, “The proposal would replace the current politician-run commission with a 15-member citizen commission of five independents and five members each from the top two political parties, currently the Republicans and Democrats. Members couldn’t be elected officials, lobbyists or political consultants.”
One point those opposed to Issue 1 claim is that using elected officials to redistrict maps is better since those officials are accountable to Ohio’s citizens.
Some of the groups that support Issue 1 include The Ohio Democratic Party, multiple unions, the League of Women Voters of Ohio, American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, Ohio NAACP, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio.
Groups that oppose Issue 1 include Ohio Republican Party, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, U.S. Speaker Mike Johnson and Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman.
The election is Tuesday, Nov. 5. Early voting in Ohio is already underway.