The clock is ticking toward the deadline for Ohio lawmakers to redraw a new congressional district map that can be used for the 2020 election. A federal court has given the state until June 14th to do that, but Republican Attorney General Dave Yost’s office is appealing the decision.
Democrats are excited about the prospect of possibly having new maps in time for next November’s elections. Ohio Democratic Party Chairman David Pepper said he hopes the ruling will stand, and state lawmakers will have to draw new maps. He said the current maps are so heavily gerrymandered to benefit Republicans that many voters lose faith in the electoral process.
“So, if you have fair maps in '20, I think it lifts Democratic turnout higher than it would normally be because for the most part, people in most of these districts think their vote didn’t matter, and that’s exactly what the gerrymandering was intended to do.”
Pepper said Democratic voters are also excited about the choices they have for the top of the ticket. More than 20 Democrats have announced they are running in the party’s primary for president.
