WCBE News

Ohio Voters Approve Congressional Redistricting Plan

WCBE 90.5FM | By Ohio Public Radio

Published May 9, 2018 at 5:03 AM EDT

Ohio Voters overwhelmingly approved the congressional redistricting measure Tuesday.

Issue 1 sets up new rules on splitting counties and increasing minority party input. Ohio Public Radio's Karen Kasler reports.

Issue 1 keeps the Congressional map drawing power with state lawmakers – though Republican legislators drew the current map, considered among the most gerrymandered in the country. But for the ideal outcome a new map has to get 50 percent minority party approval. Catherine Turcer of Common Cause Ohio gave credit to good government groups who’d worked on this issue for decades, and to state lawmakers who pushed for a deal earlier this year.

“We live in an incredibly polarized time. It’s so hard to come up with a compromise. And our legislature did it. And so I’m just really happy.”

The process set up in Issue 1 takes effect after the 2020 census.

Tags

Ohio Public Radio

The Statehouse News Bureau was founded in 1980 to provide educational, comprehensive coverage of legislation, elections, issues and other activities surrounding the Statehouse to Ohio's public radio and television stations. To this day, the Bureau remains the only broadcast outlet dedicated to in-depth coverage of state government news and topics of statewide interest. The Bureau is funded througheTech Ohio, and is managed by ideastream. The reporters at the Bureau follow the concerns of the citizens and voters of Ohio, as well as the actions of the Governor, the Ohio General Assembly, the Ohio Supreme Court, and other elected officials. We strive to cover statehouse news, government issues, Ohio politics, and concerns of business, culture and the arts with balance and fairness, and work to present diverse voices and points of view from the Statehouse and throughout Ohio. The three award-winning journalists at the bureau have more than 60 combined years of radio and television experience. They can be heard on National Public Radio and are regular contributors to Morning Edition, All Things Considered and Marketplace. Every weekday, the Statehouse News Bureau produces in-depth news reports forOhio's public radio stations. Those stories are also available on this website, either on the front page or in our archives. Weekly, the Statehouse News Bureau produces a television show from our studios in the Statehouse. The State of Ohio is an unique blend of news, interviews, talk and analysis, and is broadcast on Ohio's public television stations. The Statehouse News Bureau also produces special programming throughout the year, including the Governor's annual State of the State address to the Ohio General Assembly and a five-part year-end review.

See stories by Ohio Public Radio