Ohio’s redistricting commission passed a Republican-favored map unanimously Friday as onlookers jeered and yelled that lawmakers “sold” them out.
The new map could grant Republicans two more House seats as the national redistricting battle continues.
A bipartisan commission crafted the new map, enabling it to take effect immediately instead of having to go through the state legislature. Republicans hope the new maps can grant them a 12 out of 15 congressional seat advantage in the state.
As the vote was announced, onlookers yelled at the commission in dissent. At least one person said, “You sold us out!”
Many who gave testimony before the vote did not agree with the redistricting decision. Much of the frustration emanated from the alleged lack of transparency in the map-drawing process, which occurred behind closed doors.
“The people of Ohio want and deserve fair and accountable representation, which requires fair maps and a transparent, public process for creating them that includes ample time for meaningful public input and feedback,” League of Women Voters of Ohio program coordinator Trevor Martin said.
Common Cause Ohio associate director Mia Lewis said the new maps exemplify that politicians can’t be trusted with drawing electoral maps.
“There’s a lot of anger and frustration in this room, and it’s not just the result of this most recent betrayal. You have shown all of us, all of Ohio, that politicians cannot be involved in drawing district lines,” she said.
The new map draws the Ohio’s First Congressional District, represented by Democratic Rep. Greg Landsman, into essentially a toss-up. Rep. Marcy Kaptur’s (D-OH) district, already a Trump-leaning one, has been redrawn into a +10 Trump district. The new lines make it more improbable that Kaptur will keep her seat.
She says she will run for reelection in 2026 anyway.
“Gerrymandering diminishes our state’s stature even as population stagnates. Ohio voters have consistently called for fair representation and transparency. While Democrats on the Redistricting Commission proposed a fair map at the outset of this process, in one party rule Columbus, self-interested politicians cut side deals to pave their own future,” she wrote on X.
“Let the Columbus politicians make their self-serving maps and play musical chairs, I will fight on for the people and ask the voters for their support next year,” she added.
The redistricting fight in Ohio is one of many across the United States this year. Texas redistricted despite a wide uproar in August, hoping to gain Republican seats. In response, California will vote on Proposition 5 this November, which will instate maps that favor Democrats.
National Democratic redistricting leadership lightly disagreed with the new maps in Ohio, even though they passed with bipartisan support. They called it an “imperfect map,” though it does allow Democratic incumbents to compete.
DEWINE GIVES NO WORD ON WHEN REDISTRICTING COMMISSION WILL MEET
“Make no mistake, this map is a gerrymander placed on top of another gerrymander, and the fight for fairness in Ohio is far from over,” former U.S. Attorney General and chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee Eric H. Holder Jr. said in a statement.
“As the White House has pushed for attacks on our democracy in state after state, Ohio’s Democratic Legislative Leadership has fended off the most extreme scenario in the Buckeye State. Though there is substantial work to do, this imperfect map allows sitting Democrats to continue to compete in all their existing congressional districts,” he added.