COLUMBUS, Ohio — Governor Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) has voiced his opposition to a Democrat-sponsored state constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would purportedly seek to “end gerrymandering” in the state.
The only problem is that it won’t happen, Gov. DeWine said at a press conference Wednesday.
The amendment in question would transfer power to draw the state’s electoral districts from the current Ohio Redistricting Commission to a new entity called the “Citizens Redistricting Commission.”
If the amendment passes, it would create a CRC made up of 15 members elected by direct popular vote. The CRC would consist of five Democrats, five Republicans, and five “independents” at any one time. The current ORC has seven members, including Governor DeWine himself.
“We must stop writing and rewriting our state constitution. We must reject this ballot measure,” DeWine said at a press conference Wednesday condemning the measure, which gathered enough citizen signatures earlier this month to be placed on Ohio’s November ballot.
“They needed signatures, so they paid people to go out and collect signatures,” DeWine said, “but there’s no vetting. There’s no vetting on this at all.”
The government argues that it’s not who draws the map that matters, but how it’s drawn.
So he is focusing on what he calls the “Iowa Plan,” looking to his Midwestern neighbors as a model for drawing districts.
Iowa’s unique redistricting system allows a nonpartisan agency to administer the process without access to additional information such as past voting records or party affiliations when drawing new maps.
Governor DeWine wants to implement a similar strategy in Ohio to avoid the new commission prioritizing proportionality of voter affiliation above all else in the redistricting process.
During the press conference, Governor DeWine showed a slide of a sample map created by a third-party consultant who was hired to create a map that was as proportional as possible.
“[Proportionality] “That’s cool,” Governor DeWine said, pointing to a sample slide, “but here we have 10 different cities and counties split up into one district just for proportionality.”
Republicans hold a supermajority in the Ohio General Assembly, meaning Governor DeWine has no veto power over the Ohio Legislature.
That means Governor DeWine can only present requests, not demands, to the General Assembly, as he acknowledged in his remarks, but he added that he remains determined to make his position heard loud and clear.
“I want to do this the right way,” he said. “There should be public hearings and review of this plan…. I’m going to work hard with the council to get this on the ballot, and if we can’t pass it, I’m going to work hard to pass this by initiative. That’s the fallback plan.”
Republican House Speaker Jason Stevens of Ohio had kind words for the governor but did not acknowledge his challenge to put the Iowa plan on the ballot before November.
“I look forward to working with the Governor, Senate and the entire Republican caucus in November to vote down Proposition 1. Once Proposition 1 is defeated, we will continue to work to ensure that all Ohioans have their voices heard and represented,” he said.
The Ohio Legislature is currently in recess and is not expected to reconvene until after the November 5th election, meaning Governor DeWine will almost certainly have to call a special session before then if he wants to put the Iowa plan on a vote the “right way.”
DeWine gave the Republicans in power an open-ended task.
Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-N.Y., said the governor is “afraid” of Democrat-sponsored voting bills.
“Ohioans deserve leaders who reflect our values and who will always keep their promise to respect the will of the voters. Today was a deliberate attempt by the Governor to confuse and distract voters from the truth,” she said. “Republicans know their rigged redistricting power grab is nearing the end, and they’re desperate.”
A strategist for former Gov. John Kasich was asked whether he thought the Legislature would put the Iowa plan to a vote or whether he thought DeWine could implement the plan as a citizen initiative without the Legislature.
They responded briefly.
“No. And we’re not,” they told The Post.
Now Governor DeWine and the Republican Party will either place the Iowa Plan on the ballot in competition with Issue 1, or attempt to sway public opinion to “defeat” Issue 1 before it reaches the ballot box.
