Ohio is consistently regarded as one of the most gerrymandered states in the country. According to the Brennan Center for Justice, more than 9 million Ohioans, or about 77% of the state’s population, live in legislative districts where elections for state representatives are simply not competitive.
Voters passed bans on gerrymandering in 2015 and 2018, with the hope that making the process more bipartisan would create fairer districts.
But Ohio’s bipartisan Supreme Court deemed the state’s legislative and congressional maps unconstitutional seven times in 2021 and 2022, arguing that the Republican members of the Ohio redistricting commission were drawing lines to unfairly benefit their party out of proportion with the preferences of voters statewide.
This year, voters have a chance to overhaul the process again through Issue 1, which would take the redistricting process out of the hands of politicians, party leaders and lobbyists, placing that power in the hands of a 15-person commission made up of citizens.
The group behind Issue 1, Citizens Not Politicians, led in part by Republican former Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor, says a citizen-led commission in charge of redistricting would create legislative districts that are fair and constitutional.
The group opposed, called Ohio Works, says redistricting powers should stay with elected officials because they are accountable to the public.
Ohio’s Issue 1 ballot amendment was the topic of the latest “Sound of Ideas Community Tour,” which took place on the campus of Oberlin College and Conservatory on Monday, Oct. 28.
The conversation featured Jen Miller, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, advocating for Issue 1, as well as David Arredondo, the former chair of the Lorain County GOP, who opposed the issue.
Karen Kasler, from the Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau, and Ali Masood, a political science professor at Oberlin College rounded out the panel and provided context regarding gerrymandering and redistricting.
You can find the ballot language here - provided by the Secretary of State's office.
Guests:
- Karen Kasler, Bureau Chief, Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau
- Ali Masood, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Politics, Oberlin College and Conservatory
- Jen Miller, Executive Director, The League of Women Voters of Ohio
- David Arredondo, Former Chair, Lorain County Republican Party
