 Issue 1 of the May Ballot
Thanks to the collection of more than 200,000 signatures to place congressional redistricting reform on the November ballot, the Ohio Senate unanimously passed their own bipartisan plan on February 5. The Ohio House moved quickly and voted (83-10) on February 6. The resolution, Senate Joint Resolution 5 (SJR 5), establishes strong protections against one-party control of congressional redistricting reform. Voters will need to approve this proposed change to the Ohio Constitution, which will be Issue 1 on the May Primary Ballot. The Ohio General Assembly would never have taken action if it wasn’t for the work of redistricting reformers like you. Thank you so much for all your hard work to improve democracy! A big thank you to the team of redistricting reformers who are busy organizing petitions at Petition Central. Click here for Flyer about Issue 1 Some Talking points:
Click here for More Information on Issue 1 Signature gathering to place the Fair Districts = Fair Elections proposal on the November General Election Ballot will continue in case SJR 5/Issue 1 does not pass in May. Thank you so much for collecting signatures. Please turn in your petitions regularly. Let’s Get Together! On March 11 from 2:00pm to 4:00pm at the Whetstone Public Library, 3901 N. High Street, Columbus, Ohio 43214, let’s get together to talk about Issue 1 of May 2018 and the next steps for slaying the gerrymander. Sign up here. If you have questions, suggestions or would like to organize another discussion or event, please call 614-259-8388. Thank you for all your hard work fighting gerrymandering! Catherine Turcer Common Cause and Fair Districts
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 Our efforts are paying off! After years of advocacy and months of gathering signatures for a new ballot initiative that would make the process for drawing Ohio’s congressional map more fair and less partisan, Ohioans across the state may have finally convinced the General Assembly that inaction on gerrymandering is unacceptable. Tonight, the Ohio Senate (31-0) passed a proposed amendment to the Ohio Constitution that meets the standards our Fair Districts = Fair Elections coalition have demanded from any congressional redistricting reform proposal. We have demanded that:
Here’s how it works: Stage One: Passage of a map requires a three-fifths vote of both the House and Senate and must include at least 50 percent support of minority party members. If that doesn’t work… Stage Two: Ohio’s existing seven-person bipartisan redistricting commission will be empowered to draw districts and must approve a map with at least two minority party votes. If that doesn’t work… Stage Three: The legislature gets another chance to pass either (1) a 10-year map with one-third of the minority party’s support or (2) a four-year map without minority party support. If the process gets to the last stage not requiring minority party support, stricter rules protecting against unfair manipulation would apply. Elected officials do not give up the power to draw one-sided congressional districts on their own. This happened because of your visits, rallies, calls, and emails, and because together we have gathered more than 200,000 signatures. We are about to make history because of your hard work. The Ohio House will vote on this proposal on Wednesday. If it’s approved, it will go to the ballot for voter approval in May. Thank you for keeping up the fight and pushing the Ohio General Assembly to do the right thing.  |