For the fourth time, the Ohio Supreme Court rejected Republican and Senate maps drawn by Republicans, sending cartographers back to the drawing board.
The timing is crucial because Ohio needs legislative cards by Wednesday to hold primary elections on Aug. 2, the latest possible date, according to U.S. election officials.
But in its 4-3 ruling, the Supreme Court rejected the premise, saying the primary election could take place later than August 2nd and the card could be completed by 9am on May 6, the court’s new deadline.
“The so-called ‘deadline’ of 20 April for the implementation of the General Assembly-District plan appears to be an artificial deadline based on a speculative, potential date for the primary election in the US legislature,” according to a majority opinion. author.
If the Ohio Redistribution Commission can’t find a solution, the task could fall to a trio of federal judges.
The Ohio Supreme Court also rejected a request for contempt of court by members of the Ohio Redistribution Commission. Democratic and electoral rights groups prosecuting the cards have asked the court to punish the commission or some of its members for failing to approve a constitutional card.
What did the court order?
The majority of the court suggested that the Ohio Redistribution Commission start with maps made by two hired cartographers, Michael MacDonald, a professor of political science at the University of Florida, and Douglas Johnson, president of the National Demographic Corporation.
“Under certain measures, their plan – albeit incomplete – is on track to be in line with the constitution,” the majority said.
The hired cartographers’ plan had fewer areas to throw on both sides of the political path than those approved by Republicans in committee. A majority in court gave preference to cards that exactly matched Ohio residents’ voting preferences – about 54% for Republican candidates and 46% for Democrats – and too many casting areas for one political party.
Three Republican judges disagreed with the court’s ruling, saying the Court – not members of the Republican Party in the Commission – had thrown the Ohio election into chaos.
“We’re stuck in a time cycle, like the characters in The Marmot Day,” wrote Judge Sharon Kennedy, a Republican running for judge. “The film, of course, was comedic entertainment, but the result of these cases is anything but the people of this state.
Why were the cards rejected?
The now-rejected cards are the result of GOP card makers changing plans that were previously rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court. The fourth version reduced the number of highly competitive seats for Democrats, but there were still no such competitive seats for Republican candidates.
Four Republicans from the Ohio Redistribution Commission approved the cards on March 28. GOP auditor Keith Faber and two Democrats on the committee voted against them, albeit for different reasons. Without the support of the Democrats, the cards would have lasted four years.
“Although the committee appears to be involved in a more joint process in drafting the legislative map, the last day leading to the adoption of the third recast plan revealed everything else,” the majority wrote.
A majority in court said Senate President Matt Huffman’s focus on protecting incumbents had slowed mapping.
Republican judges: “The majority of fraudsters” are in power
Republican Judge Patrick Fischer said a majority opinion did not follow the Ohio Constitution and removed the incentive for Democrats to compromise.
If a majority of four judges had not ignored the constitutional text, Ohio would have had a district plan months ago and would have no problem setting election dates, a constitutional crisis or the threat of a federal court takeover, he said.
“The majority of opinions in these cases continue to harm this court, the Ohio Constitution and all citizens of this great state. “These views have put this country on an unconstitutional path,” Fischer wrote. He added that action by a federal court may be needed to rectify it.
Judge Patrick Dewain, a Republican, used a harsher tone, saying “the majority of fraudsters are simply exercising harsh political power.”
He said the majority was just making up requirements for cards that were not in the state constitution. Efforts to meet these symmetry requirements have resulted in maps that have divided cities like slices of pizza, he said.
“If it is really true that history repeats itself, first as a tragedy, then as a farce, we are now comfortably in the farce phase,” Dewain concluded. “The fourth adopted plan is in line with all constitutional standards.
What happens next?
Ohio may not have seen the last of these rejected legislative cards. Three federal judges have the task of setting a primary date and choosing cards if Ohio leaders can’t do so before April 20th.
The trio of judges may have to choose between a variety of options, including using maps rejected by the Ohio Supreme Court, retaining maps used in the past decade, or choosing new maps, such as those made by the two hired cartographers.
Not so fast, the Ohio Supreme Court majority wrote on Thursday. “Any suggestion that the federal court could – even less than it should – set a date for the primary election on August 2 as a means of defense in the federal court case seems to us at best a dubious proposal.
Early voting for the May 3 primary is already running without candidates for the State House and Senate on the ballot. Ohio residents will vote for candidates from across the state, such as the U.S. Senate and Governor, candidates for Congress and local competitions. The competitions in the state houses will be held later.
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Jesse Ballmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Inquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations in Ohio.
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