Ohio Republicans Pass Heavily Gerrymandered Map, Equal Districts Coalition Urges DeWine to Veto
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 18, 2021
Contact:
Katy Shanahan, 614-372-6980, shanahan@redistrictingaction.org
Rachel Coyle, 419-351-5844, coyle@innovationohio.org
COLUMBUS — TODAY, the Equal Districts Coalition — a group of over 30 Ohio advocacy organizations and labor unions engaged in the 2021 redistricting process — urged Governor Mike DeWine to veto the heavily gerrymandered congressional district map passed by the Republican Statehouse supermajority.
“These sham maps are especially harmful to our Black and Brown communities — they undermine the voting power of communities of color by cracking them apart and packing them together into districts that minimize our political influence,” said Kobie Christian, spokesperson for For Our Future Ohio. “We call on Governor DeWine to defend democracy in our state, protect the representation of communities of color, and veto these rigged maps.”
Statehouse Republicans introduced and passed the new map in just a few days. It was crafted behind closed doors, without input from the minority party or the public. The map will give Republicans 80% - 87% of Ohio’s congressional seats, despite the fact that Republicans only win about 55% of Ohio’s statewide vote.
“Gerrymandered district maps lead to extreme legislators like the ones dominating Ohio's Statehouse. They're attacking voting rights, protest rights, reproductive rights, the right to an accurate education, and more. They're out of control. Governor DeWine needs to stand up to his party's extremists and veto these rigged maps,” said Desiree Tims, President and CEO of Innovation Ohio.
Throughout the past year, the Equal Districts Coalition has been calling for legislative and congressional district maps that keep communities together, empower communities of color, and reflect how Ohioans vote. Using these standards, a fair congressional map would break down to eight Republican seats and seven Democratic seats in Congress. The Republican-passed map, however, will hand Republicans an outlandish 12 or 13 seats in Congress.
“When redistricting, map drawers face a clear choice: to either preserve their own political power or to preserve our democracy. The Republicans have clearly chosen not just to preserve but to actually enhance their political power by gerrymandering,” said Katy Shanahan, Ohio State Director for All On The Line. “They’ve brazenly chosen to relegate Ohio to four years with an even more gerrymandered map than before – a map that shuts voters out of the political process and denies our communities any real say in who represents us.”
The Equal Districts Coalition urges Ohioans to contact Governor DeWine and demand that he veto the Republican-drawn congressional map. The map clearly does not adhere to the promises DeWine made in 2018, when he told the Cincinnati Enquirer that “the rules are pretty clear — the voters said that the redistricting process should be done in a bipartisan way. When I am governor, there will be an expectation that the new district maps honor the voters’ wishes.”
"Ohioans deserve no less than a fair congressional map, which includes 7 Democratic seats and 8 Republican seats. These numbers reflect how Ohioans actually vote and meet the requirements laid out in our state constitution,” said Jeniece Brock, Policy and Advocacy Director for the Ohio Organizing Collaborative. “Ohioans voted roughly 46% Democrat and 54% Republican during the last election, and the new congressional map must reflect this reality. Governor DeWine must remember his promises to Ohio voters and respect our need for a fair, representative, and constitutional map that does not crack and pack or disenfranchise our communities.”
Here’s what Equal Districts Coalition partners are saying about Ohio's gerrymandered congressional map:
Raymond Greene Jr., Executive Director, The Freedom Bloc:
“The public has a right to choose who represents them. These maps allow politicians to choose whom they represent — that is not democracy. We must create an equal and just society, and it starts with equitable districts.”
Katie Paris, Founder, Red Wine & Blue:
“Governor DeWine continues to reveal himself as too weak to stand up to the extremists in his party. Whether it's masks in schools or keeping our kids safe from gun violence, he backs down at every turn. Will this time be any different — or will he continue to prioritize getting four more years above all else?”
Petee Talley, Chief Officer, Ohio Coalition on Black Civic Participation / Ohio Unity Coalition:
“The proposed map is badly gerrymandered with no underlying rationale being given for why Blacks in Hamilton County have been split into three separate congressional districts. The map clearly advantages one political party over another. It is a slap in the face to all of us who worked hard for Fair Districts.”
Heather Taylor-Miesle, Executive Director, Ohio Environmental Council:
"This process clearly demonstrates that the 2018 Congressional redistricting agreement was nothing more than lip service. A supermajority of Ohioans told the Statehouse to put them first, and this map clearly shows their loud voice was ignored. When we're facing down the immediate impacts of climate change, we can't afford rigged maps.”
Lauren Blauvelt-Copelin, Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Advocacy, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio:
“Democracy does not happen behind closed doors—corruption does. These Republican-drawn districts give Republicans a landslide of unearned representation in the United States House. Democracy works when voters pick their legislators, not when legislators pick their voters. Democracy works when legislators are accountable for their actions and can be voted out. But these congressional maps will hand Republicans undeserved, extreme power and leave them unaccountable for their actions.”
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The Equal Districts Coalition is the largest redistricting coalition in Ohio, with over 30 member organizations. It includes the Ohio State Conference of the NAACP, Ohio Organizing Collaborative, OAPSE/AFSCME, AFSCME Ohio Council 8, the Ohio Environmental Council, Innovation Ohio, the Ohio Student Association, ProgressOhio, All On the Line-Ohio, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio, Ohio Council of Churches, NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, URGE – Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity, LEAD Ohio, the Ohio Women’s Alliance, the Ohio Federation of Teachers, Ohio Education Association, CAIR-Ohio, Campus Vote Project, For Our Future Ohio, Ohio Unity Coalition, Equality Ohio, The Freedom Bloc, and more.