Avoid the “Fair Districts” Marketing Ploy! Vote NO on Issue 1 in November
Skip Claypool and Matt Urbas contributed to this report
It’s Summer, which means the Left have succeeded in placing yet another horrible Constitutional Amendment on Ohio’s upcoming November ballot. Once again, they used out-of-state money and deceptive marketing to collect signatures. Once again, they are poised to permanently alter our Constitution with an absurdly long and convoluted Amendment designed to turn our Red state Blue. Once again, they can’t succeed in getting liberal bills through our Legislature or candidates elected, so they are attempting to end Republican representation with a deceptive Amendment.
Issue 1 will be on the ballot in November. It aims to put an outlandishly complicated and corruptible system for redistricting into our Ohio Constitution. Beware! The nice-sounding phrases like “fair districts” and “citizens over politicians” are not what they seem. Click here to read the ballot language for Issue 1.
Permanent gerrymandering will stretch Democrat districts far out into rural areas
Issue 1 will create stretched-out districts that start in the urban areas and reach all the way into rural areas. In order to achieve their definition of “proportionality”, districts will look like pinwheels or octopus tentacles. These districts will contain voters with wildly different needs and governing priorities. Candidates seeking to represent one of these districts will need to span vast geographic areas and demographic populations.
The “Citizen commission” will be required to gerrymander districts politically and racially to meet “proportionality.” They will need to draw districts based on the total statewide votes each party receives over a period of time. This effectively DETERMINES the NUMBER of Republican and Democrat SEATS in the statehouse. If Republicans fall below 60 seats in the House or 20 in the Senate, it will be IMPOSSIBLE for them to have the numbers needed to pass any constitutional amendments like “Un-Mask Ohio” OR to OVERRIDE a VETO from a corrupt governor – potentially leaving the state powerless against harmful mandates like those seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ohio Advocates for Medical Freedom
Funded by out-of-state Democrats
The proponents of Issue 1 pretend it is a local, citizen-led effort, yet petitions to get this issue on the ballot were shipped to local Board of Elections offices from addresses in Texas. Paid, out-of-state workers were employed to collect signatures and now well known, far-left organizations like the ACLU and League of Women Voters are pushing the issue. The Amendment is also being funded by NDRC, The National Democratic Redistricting Committee, a 527 political nonprofit run by former Attorney General Eric Holder. Ohio donors include the ACLU, Ohio Progressive Collaborative, Ohio Education Association, American Federation of Teachers.
Overwhelmingly complicated and corruptible
Issue 1 would place a preposterously complicated plan into our Constitution, yet it provides no oversight, no remedies for mistakes or malfeasance, and provides no limits on timing or cost. A quick peek inside the proposed new redistricting process reveals how convoluted it is. (Many thanks to Matt Urbas of Ohio Political Action and The Buckeye Patriot Podcast for the graphics he created.)
Step 1: The Ballot Board chooses 16 retired Judges (8 Republican and 8 Democrat).
Step 2: These 16 judges then vote to eliminate 12 of their group. Republicans eliminate Democrats and Democrats eliminate Republicans.
(Most likely scenario: 4 “moderate” Democrats who are still radical and 4 fake Republicans (RINOs) who might as well be Democrats.)
Step 3: The 4 remaining judges choose a professional search firm to solicit and screen applicants who would like to serve on the Redistricting Commission (no guidelines or cost limits provided).
Step 4: The 4 judges choose 90 applicants by majority vote. Interviews are publicly broadcast (again – the cost?).
Step 5: A public comment period ensues, of unspecified length.
Step 6: The judges narrow the field down from 90 to 45 applicants.
These applicants are sorted by Republican, Democrat and Independent, with “Independent” applicants being equally represented with Ds and Rs. This is problematic for 2 reasons. First, party is assigned by which ballot a voter chose in the most recent primary, which means the well-known D strategy of “ballot hopping” will result in mistaken affiliations. Second, many or most voters identified as Independent are actually Ds or Rs who just haven’t voted in the most recent primary.
Step 7: From these 45 “finalists”, 6 Redistricting Commissioners are randomly chosen, 2 each Republican, Democrat, and “Independent”.
Step 8: The initial 6 Commissioners then go back through the applications and choose 9 additional Commissioners, again, equally divided between Republican, Democrat, and “Independent”.
Every step of the process is supposed to result in unrealistic and unobtainable representation of the “geographic and demographic diversity of Ohio.”
So we would be Constitutionally required to create a Redistricting Commission with 12 white members, 2 black members, 2/3 of a Latino member, and 1/3 of an Asian member.
Removes citizen oversight
Passing Issue 1 will remove our ability as citizens to impact and oversee the process. Matt Urbas explains, “Right now we have a commission that is seven people, and it is bipartisan. There are two from the majority members of the legislature and two from the minority and then we have three statewide elected officials. Governor, Secretary of State and Auditor.” All of the people who decide districting now are elected by the people.
But this new scheme has no plan for oversight, correction, or redress of mistakes or malfeasance once this is put into our Constitution. This convoluted plan that places 8 steps of process between the voters and the Commission will remove the power of citizens to choose who draws our maps.
The bottom line
The current plan for redistricting passed with more than 74% approval by the voters of Ohio. Democrats don’t like it because it fairly represents the voters, most of whom are Republican. They are frustrated because they don’t like living in a majority Republican state, so they claim our districts don’t really represent Ohioans. Ask yourself one question: if our state isn’t really Republican, then why do we keep electing Republicans to Executive office in Ohio? Don’t fall for the hype and marketing!
Vote NO on Issue 1!
See also…
LISTEN: Real Scoop: Anti-gerrymandering constitutional amendment Democrat effort to gerrymander for their own benefit; scheme ruled unconstitutional in Michigan
LISTEN: Ohio Auditor Faber on Ohio Issue 1
1 Response
[…] Vote NO on Issue 1’s Radical Redistricting Scheme. It’s Summer in Ohio, which means, once again there is a terrible leftist Constitutional Amendment that has just been added to our November ballot. “Issue 1” has been marketed to sound wonderful, but beware! The nice-sounding phrases like “fair districts” and “citizens over politicians” are not what they seem. Look past the marketing and see what this radical amendment would actually do and why it’s a very bad deal for Ohio. […]