redistricting reform
Ohio GOP leaders may have sole power to intervene in gerrymandering cases
A last-second addition to the Ohio Senate’s budget proposal would give Republican leaders sole ability to contest legal challenges to the new legislative maps drawn this year. Ohio voters in 2015 and 2018 approved new redistricting processes for drawing state and congressional districts that will be first implemented this year. The new system encourages greater […]
Census data used for Ohio redistricting may get here just in time
Ohio is now set to receive its U.S. Census data necessary to draw new legislative districts in mid-August, giving the state a short amount of time to abide by a redistricting timeline approved by voters. Delays in processing census data — due to the pandemic — have made Ohio officials worry the state would not […]
Huffman drops pursuit of ballot amendment to extend Ohio redistricting deadlines
Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman has ended his pursuit of a constitutional amendment to push back redistricting deadlines in the state, a proposed attempt at dealing with delays in receiving U.S. Census data. Ohio is expected to receive census data used for drawing new federal and state legislative maps sometime in September. That is a […]
Explainer: The proposals to keep Ohio’s redistricting process on track
Ohio’s redistricting process is in a state of turmoil, with a delay in Census data leading the state to worry about there not being enough time to adequately draw new legislative maps. Republicans and Democrats have both presented plans for how Ohio can deal with these delays. In essence, legislative leaders from both parties want […]
Advocates tout an “incredible opportunity” to tamp down gerrymandering
Despite all the horrors of the coronavirus pandemic, it delivered one wrinkle that some advocates believe is an unprecedented opportunity to mitigate “partisan gerrymandering.” Ever wonder why Congress or the state legislature not only refuse to do things that have support of 70% of the public, they often turn around and do the exact opposite? […]
Census data delays may significantly impact Ohio redistricting process
Delays in processing the 2020 U.S. Census data will likely impact Ohio’s ability to redraw legislative districts later this year. The U.S. Census Bureau announced last Friday it has pushed back the deadline to release population data to Sept. 30, months later than was originally expected, due to the pandemic. The delay could pose major […]
Ohio leaders say they’d like more competitive lege, congressional districts, cite challenges
Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted on Tuesday said they hope a new system of drawing congressional and state legislative districts will result in more competitive elections. But, they cautioned, the task will be far from simple. Ohio has among the worst partisan gerrymandering, according to multiple analyses. Districts are typically redrawn once […]
Mailbag: What is the process for Ohio redistricting in 2021?
It comes to no surprise that Ohioans’ Spotify Wrapped messages show an overwhelming amount of time spent reading the Ohio Capital Journal Mailbag. Move over, Ariana Grande! Let’s get to it. Got a question about Ohio politics/government? Send them by email to [email protected] or tweet them to @tylerjoelb. “I know questions about redistricting have been […]
Taking stock of the 2020 Election results in Ohio and their consequences
While the U.S. anxiously awaits the results of an extremely close presidential election, the results in Ohio are becoming far more clear. The long and short of it appears to be: President Donald Trump has won in Ohio (by an eight point margin, the same spread as 2016, and two points higher than his winning […]