Commentary:  Gerrymandering is the Real Threat to “Election Integrity” in Ohio

Issue 1, if passed with a Yes vote, will prevent partisan politicians and lobbyists from continuing to gerrymander election districts in the state, which is the real threat to “election integrity” in Ohio.  

Over the past decade, there has been a continued release of new voting legislation introduced in the Ohio General Assembly, and also administrative orders issued from the Ohio Secretary of State concerning voting. 

Sponsors and supporters of almost all of these new GOP bills have explained that the purpose of the new legislation is to protect “election integrity” in Ohio.  They further explain that voter fraud must be reduced in order to protect “election integrity” in the state.

Voter Fraud in Ohio is almost Nonexistent

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose overseas elections and has revealed the extent of voter fraud in the state.

In an article published on September 26, 2023 in Ohio Capital Journal reporter Nick Evans stated:

“. . . LaRose regularly notes voter fraud is rare . . . Compared to the overall number of votes cast, Ohio’s voter fraud rate pencils out to about .0001%.

The numbers confirm that voter fraud is extremely rare in Ohio and has no impact on the outcome of elections in the state. 

So, why has there continued to be a steady stream of new legislation and new administrative procedures aimed at reducing the almost nonexistent voter fraud in order to, supposedly, improve “election integrity” in the state?

The Purpose of Voting Legislation and Administrative Procedures for “Election Integrity”

An examination of “election integrity” bills introduced in the Ohio General Assembly and administrative procedures put in place by the Ohio Secretary of State reveals that their impact is to make it harder for targeted segments of Ohio citizens to vote.

For example, in 2020 and 2021, as a result of Covid, interest in voting by absentee ballot significantly increased along with voters returning their ballots in person to drop box locations in their county.

A large segment of absentee ballot voters were citizens living in major cities in Ohio who tended to vote for Democratic candidates.  And, absentee ballot voting worked to increase voter turnout of these citizens.

As a result, the Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 458 that made major changes to Ohio voting laws, including significantly limiting the number of absentee ballot drop boxes, with each of the state’s 88 counties being limited to only one drop box location. 

In a December 15, 2022 article, Andy Chow with The Statehouse News Bureau addressed this new law that makes it more difficult for segments of Ohio citizens to vote.

The Statehouse News Bureau article revealed that in major cities in Ohio, there are now hours-long waits for voters attempting to drop off a completed ballot.  Working voters, voters dependent on public transportation, handicapped voters, and others are now faced with major obstacles that have made it more difficult to vote.  There are many such obstacles in the form of new legislation and new administrative procedures that are negatively impacting voting by segments of Ohio citizens.

Another law put in place to supposedly stop the almost nonexistent voter fraud in the state involves voter ID requirements.  A sub-headline in an article in the January 18, 2023 The Guardian stated—

“Law puts Ohio among states with strictest voter ID rules and will make it harder for elderly people, the disabled, and the poor to vote.”

Ohio “Election Integrity” damaged by Gerrymandering

One of the most significant issues damaging the integrity of Ohio elections is gerrymandering.  As many Ohioans know, gerrymandering is the deliberate manipulation of the election district maps by partisan politicians in order to predetermine the outcome of an election before the first votes are ever cast.

Many voters have learned that gerrymandered election districts disenfranchise large segments of Ohio voters and raise serious issues with the integrity of elections in the state. 

The Columbus Dispatch published an article on July 1, 2024 by reporter Jessie Balmart that addresses gerrymandering in Ohio.  In the article, Maureen O’Connor, the former chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court stated:

“Seven times the politicians thumbed their noses at the citizens and trampled on the rule of law and imposed gerrymandered maps on their voters.”

Ballot Initiative to address the Real Issue damaging “Election Integrity” in Ohio

Issue 1, called Citizens Not Politician, an Amendment to the Ohio Constitution, has been placed on the November 5, 2024 ballot that will prevent partisan politicians from continuing to draw gerrymandered election district maps in the state.

Passage of this ballot issue, with a Yes vote, will establish an Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission to draw all future election district maps for a number of state and federal elections.

And, Issue 1 requires that all business of the commission has to be transparent for all voters and the media to see, instead of the current situation where all business is conducted in secret behind closed doors. 

Banning gerrymandering, removing politicians from the process of drawing the election district maps, conducting the business of the commission with complete transparency, and making it easier for all Ohio citizens to vote is the solution for ensuring election integrity in Ohio.