What gerrymandering means for voters in Ohio
The vast majority of Ohioans think that voters should be the ones that decide who wins elections, not politicians – but the same politicians who tried to undermine our voices last year are trying to confuse voters again, this time about the state constitutional amendment to end gerrymandering in Ohio. Yet again, they’ve written misleading ballot language to try to get people to say no to having a voice in their own government.
No matter what language they put on the ballot, they can’t change what the constitutional amendment actually says. Voting YES on Issue 1 puts map drawing in the hands of citizens not politicians. Don’t rely on what anyone else wants you to THINK the amendment says. Read it yourself.
DID YOU KNOW THAT OHIO DOESN’T HAVE FAIR VOTING DISTRICTS?
For years, political insiders in Ohio have created voting districts that favor extremist politicians, who can continue creating even more unfair districts. This is all designed to keep themselves in power, regardless of what (and who) voters want. This is called gerrymandering.
Ohio has tried to correct our gerrymandered districts multiple times, and we have a great opportunity to end gerrymandering in 2024.
Read on for more information about what gerrymandering is, why it’s a big deal, and what you can do to help!
What is redistricting?
Every ten years, after the US census, the number of representatives each state has in the US House of Representatives is recalculated based on the updated population numbers. This is also when each state draws their own state-level legislative districts based on population changes. In most states, the state legislature is responsible for drawing the boundaries of their own state House and Senate districts.
What is gerrymandering?
To gerrymander is to purposefully manipulate the boundaries of electoral districts in order to favor one party or class. Gerrymandered districts distort our representation and undermine democracy. The fact that politicians are the ones who currently draw their own voting district maps makes it easy for them to gerrymander, often doing so to maintain their control of the legislature.
Is gerrymandering illegal?
Not under the US Constitution. The US Supreme Court has ruled that there is no federal oversight of politically gerrymandered districts. However, unfair districts can be challenged in state court, and federal courts can still hear cases on racial gerrymandering.
What are the consequences of gerrymandering in Ohio?
Gerrymandered districts reduce competitiveness of legislative races. It essentially allows politicians to choose their voters instead of the other way around. It decreases accountability because politicians know they will be re-elected, regardless of their behavior or performance. It also results in skewed representation, where one party is disproportionately represented in the legislature versus the actual electorate. For example, in Ohio, Democrats make up 45% of registered voters but only 30% of elected state legislative seats, whereas Republicans make up 55% of registered voters but hold 70% of elected state legislative seats.
Who is most impacted by gerrymandering?
Communities with a high number of people of color are most likely to be affected by gerrymandering. Historically, through gerrymandering, politicians have drawn district lines right through these communities, splitting them across multiple districts, in order to dilute their voting power. This, in turn, decreases their representation.
Didn’t we try to eliminate gerrymandering already?
We sure did. In 2015, Ohio voters passed a constitutional amendment by a wide margin that was intended to create a Redistricting Commission that would take the boundary creation out of the legislature’s hands. Unfortunately, it just created a system where the legislators chose the Redistricting Commission members, so the districts remain as unfair as ever.
The Ohio Supreme Court has repeatedly found our district maps to be unconstitutional but legislators have ignored their findings. In November 2023, the current Ohio Supreme Court rejected yet another challenge to the constitutionality of our districts, so they remain in place for the November 2024 election.
What is the Citizens Not Politicians campaign?
Citizens Not Politicians is a grassroots coalition organizing a signature collection effort to amend the Ohio Constitution to eliminate gerrymandered districts in Ohio once and for all.
The Citizens Not Politicians amendment would:
- Create a 15-member Ohio Citizens Redistricting Commission made up of Democratic, Republican, and Independent citizens (five of each) who broadly represent the different geographic areas and demographics of the state. These qualified citizens would be chosen by a panel of four retired judges, two Republicans and two Democrats.
- Ban current or former politicians, political party officials, and lobbyists from sitting on the Commission.
- Require fair and impartial districts by making it unconstitutional to draw voting districts that discriminate against or favor any political party or individual politician.
- Require the commission to operate under an open and independent process.
Member organizations of the Citizens Not Politicians campaign include: Red Wine & Blue, Fair Districts, League of Women Voters, Common Cause, Ohio Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO, and the Ohio Democratic Party.