System ‘ broken,’ but few agree on fi x

The new four-member legislative working group got an earful Thursday from those who want to see a more transparent process for drawing fairer congressional districts that hold officeholders more accountable.

Republicans have had little trouble holding 12 of the state’s 16 congressional districts since the new map was drawn by the GOP in 2011.

“The outcome of the election feels like a foregone conclusion,” said Carole Lunney of Upper Arlington.

The panel is seeking to work out a bipartisan redistricting plan and will hold one more public hearing Wednesday. Some things to know as the process moves forward: Michael Ahern of Blacklick lamented the “increasingly partisan candidates” emerging in safe districts. “It should be as concerning to you as it is to me.”

Lawmakers understand precisely how gerrymandering works. The question is if they will be persuaded to change a process that lets the majority draw the map to its benefit.

“People want to see a different way of carving out congressional districts,” said Rep. Kirk Schuring, R-Canton, co-chair of the work group. “How we get there still remains to be seen.”

Using an army of volunteers, the coalition so far has collected 154,000 self-validated signatures since June 3, half of the 309,521 needed to make the ballot.

“As someone who has worked in politics in Ohio for more years than I care to admit, I haven’t seen this kind of (volunteer) effort before,” Carrie Davis, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, told the panel. “People have this sense that something about democracy is broken.”

Republicans were able to thwart redistricting ballot proposals in 2005 and 2012. But with growing awareness of the issue and public opinion of Congress at rock-bottom levels, some worry there may not be much enthusiasm for another expensive campaign to beat it back again.

Republican lawmakers did not address congressional gerrymandering when it enacted, and voters approved, legislative redistricting changes in 2015. Then-U.S. Speaker John Boehner, who had great influence over drawing the current map, didn’t want the process changed.

As the coalition effort picked up steam, Boehner retired, and Gov. John Kasich began publicly calling for a change, the idea gained more traction in the Statehouse.

Lawmakers are loathe to give up control over things traditionally under their purview, and GOP leaders have said they want to keep control of this map process.

The two Democratic members of the working group, Rep. Jack Cera of Bellaire and Sen. Vernon Sykes of Akron, said they would prefer a separate panel to form the lines, similar to how legislative seats will be drawn. The coalition plan also calls for a seven-member commission.

“If the legislature retains the authority to draw the district map, I would insist on some kind of bipartisanship as a requirement,” said Richard Gunther, an Ohio State University professor emeritus who has worked for years on the redistricting issue.

Considering the signatures the coalition has already collected, “to go in a different direction that doesn’t meet the goals of the League would be a difficult thing to explain to voters,” Cera said.

However, if Republicans back a plan that improves the current system, but is deemed by Democrats not as good as the coalition plan, what do they do? The legislature can go on the May 2018 ballot, but the Fair Districts coalition must wait until November 2018.

Republicans could put an issue on the ballot without Democratic votes.

A majority of legislative Democrats voted for the current congressional map. It took Sen. Matt Huffman, R-Lima, about 10 seconds after the first witness finished Thursday to remind everyone of that fact.

“I’m confused when you say only one party supported this or drew these lines,” Huffman told the witness.

Sykes replied that Democrats “were at a great disadvantage” but the deal was the best they could get.