gerrymandering
Ohio Redistricting Commission members are up for reelection. What were their roles?
Ohio’s ongoing redistricting battles have impacted the November election by changing districts and creating the need for two primaries. The congressional redistricting map decision by the Ohio Supreme Court, which deemed the map unconstitutional and unduly partisan, is being appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court by Republican legislative leaders Senate President Matt Huffman and House […]
Ohio GOP leaders push U.S. Supreme Court to give them free rein to rig elections with gerrymandering
All the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. The ruling party in Ohio is appealing for absolute power to rig federal elections in the state. Ohio Republicans want the Ohio Supreme Court removed as an arbiter of constitutional compliance for congressional district maps that break all the rules of fairness. They don’t give a damn […]
U.S. Supreme Court to consider case that could radically reshape the country’s elections
The U.S. Supreme Court could soon grant state legislatures unconditional control over federal elections, clearing the way for lawmakers to gerrymander their states with impunity and pass voter restriction measures without interference from state courts. The high-stakes election case, Moore v. Harper, comes out of North Carolina after its Republican-controlled legislature passed in November 2021 a gerrymandered […]
States’ chief justices group argues against independent state legislatures “theory”
Calling it “invalid,” a group of influential judges is coming down against a theory that could give state legislatures the authority to set election and redistricting laws without the oversight of state courts. The Conference of Chief Justices, a group made up of the nation’s highest judicial officers, filed a rare amicus brief recently in […]
Alabama case that could limit Voting Rights Act heard at U.S. Supreme Court
WASHINGTON – U.S. Supreme Court justices on Tuesday heard oral arguments in a case that challenges an Alabama redistricting map and could potentially eliminate remaining federal safeguards against racial gerrymandering. Voting rights advocates fear that the high court’s conservative majority will further weaken the Voting Rights Act, with implications for voters in states across the country. […]
Economic inequality keeps getting worse, along with America’s toxic, corrupt politics
The most reliable economic fact for nearly 50 years is that American wealth and income inequality continues to explode. Alongside that we’ve seen rampant corruption and the toxic debasement of our politics. Meanwhile, hard-working Ohio and American families continue to suffer enormous hardship from poverty wages; childhood and family hunger; limited access to basic personal […]
GOP officials and a collegiate political scandal could nix Dem’s ballot slot in SE Ohio
An Athens County Democrat filed a lawsuit last week asking the Ohio Supreme Court to reverse a decision by the Republican Secretary of State and allow her onto the ballot in a southeast Ohio House district. The story of the ballot fight includes a scandal in Ohio University’s Student Senate, a primary election delayed by […]
Ohio chief justice: ‘We do not have a Constitution that will end gerrymandering’
Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor said she plans to become a part of the anti-gerrymandering effort once she leaves office at the end of the year. In committing to her next steps after the her term-limited time as the head of the state’s highest court, she also acknowledged the failures that happened in […]
Analysis: Only 1 in 4 Statehouse races will be competitive under new redistricting plan
On the first run of Ohio’s new legislative redistricting system, as few as one in four races are likely to produce competitive general elections, a new analysis shows. All 99 seats in the Ohio House and 17 of 33 Senate seats are up this year. Of those 116 races, just 30 will take place […]
Discussions underway to propose new redistricting reform to Ohio voters
As Ohio enters its second year of redistricting, still without a constitutional map under its belt, a movement to reform the process is also reappearing. One might ask: Didn’t we already reform the process? Isn’t that how the Ohio Redistricting Commission came to be? “This process could have worked,” said Catherine Turcer, executive director of […]
Redistricting: One year later, Ohio a unique, flawed case
One year after the saga of redistricting began, Ohio is seen as a unique case study in the legal strategies and flaws that can emerge in the process. Ohio’s journey to develop maps for the legislative and congressional voting districts began with the convening of the Ohio Redistricting Commission by Gov. Mike DeWine, himself a […]
Public awaits more redistricting work, but new law gives court little leeway to force it
The Ohio Redistricting Commission still hasn’t made any moves to redraw congressional maps based on the Ohio Supreme Court’s order, but how much the state’s highest court can punish the commission isn’t clear at this point. When the court rejected the most recent set of congressional districts, they gave the General Assembly 30 days to […]