(The Center Square) – The second planned meeting of the Ohio Redistricting Commission could end before it begins if members can’t agree on the two people to lead the group.
Secretary of State Frank LaRose says new state legislative maps should be passed by Sept. 22.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said after Wednesday’s first organizational hearing ended without selecting co-chairmen, he will cancel Friday’s 8 a.m. scheduled meeting if Republicans cannot settle on their co-chairmen.
Wednesday’s meeting was the first since May 5, 2022. It ended after Republican members DeWine, LaRose, State Auditor Keith Faber, Rep. Jeff LaRe and Sen. Rob McColley, along with Democratic members Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio and House Minority Leader Allison Russo took the oath of office.
Commission Democrats called Wednesday’s failure a bad omen for drawing new districts.
“What should have been a fairly procedural meeting was anything but today,” Antonio and Russo said in a joint statement. “The people of Ohio established this commission with the expectation that elected officials would draw constitutional maps with fair representation. Instead, the Republican-controlled commission showed they’re not even capable of getting the process started despite having 16 months to get prepared. We have a lot to prove to the people of Ohio that we are capable of getting the job done, and we remain optimistic that we can. Fair districts mean better representation, and better representation means better, more responsive government for the people, by the people.”
As previously reported by The Center Square, state legislative maps last for 10 years if at least two members of each political party vote for the proposal. Each map presented previously received support from only the five Republican members of the commission. Neither of the two Democrats voted for any proposed map.
The meeting comes after the commission’s months-long effort to develop state and congressional district lines that the courts repeatedly rejected.
Eventually, a federal court implemented maps, twice ruled unconstitutional by the Ohio Supreme Court, to be used in a second primary in August 2022.
In May 2018, Ohio voters approved a constitutional amendment that was expected to create a bipartisan redistricting commission. The commission consists of seven members – a member appointed by the Senate president, the House speaker, Senate minority leader and House minority leader, the governor, state auditor and the secretary of state.
