Ohio Issue 1 Information

Ohio Issue 1, the Congressional Redistricting Procedures Amendment, is on the ballot in Ohio as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on May 8, 2018.[1]

A “YES” vote supports changing the vote requirements to pass congressional redistricting maps and the standards used in congressional redistricting in Ohio. To learn more about what changes Issue 1 would make, see the measure design section (click here).

A “NO” vote opposes new congressional redistricting procedures and standards, thus allowing the Ohio General Assembly to continue adopting congressional redistricting plans through a simple majority vote.

What’s the current congressional redistricting system in Ohio?

As of 2018, the Ohio General Assembly is responsible for adopting the state’s congressional redistricting plan, subject to the governor’s veto or citizen-initiated veto referendum. Redistricting is the process by which new congressional and state legislative district boundaries are drawn. Adopting a congressional redistricting plan requires a simple majority vote in both chambers of the state General Assembly. The last time the state General Assembly adopted congressional maps was in 2011, which followed the 2010 U.S. Census. Republicans controlled the state Senate, state House, and governor’s office, thus holding a trifecta in state government. Republicans adopted a congressional redistricting plan with the support of 4 of 50 legislative Democrats (8 percent).^[2]