Ohio Ballot Board moves 2024 redistricting constitutional amendment forward

A proposed constitutional amendment that would overhaul how Ohio handles drawing legislative districts cleared another hurdle Thursday morning and is now closer to getting in front of voters in November 2024.

The GOP-majority Ohio Ballot Board, chaired by Secretary of State Frank LaRose, voted unanimously to allow the proposal to eventually appear as a single issue on the ballot—rather than dividing it. That would have required the coalition Citizens Not Politicians to gather at least double the number of necessary petition signatures.

It took Citizens Not Politicians three tries to get Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s authorization on the language for their proposal to enable an independent commission to take over the redistricting process. But LaRose began the meeting by saying he believed it “should be a quick and efficient meeting,” and in less than ten minutes, the ballot board had made its decision.

That brevity—alongside the vote itself—was a relief for the proposal’s backers as they eye next November’s ballot, according to Jen Miller, the state’s League of Women Voters executive director. The League of Women Voters is backing the proposal.

“It has one single goal of restoring fairness into Ohio's redistricting process, because Ohioans have been facing gerrymandering for decades,” Miller said.