Ohio Redistricting Commission can be deposed in suits, Supreme Court says
Plaintiffs in the three pending redistricting lawsuits will be allowed to question Gov. Mike Dewine, Senate President Matt Huffman and the other members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission despite requests from their attorneys, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
Several groups including the League of Women Voters of Ohio and National Redistricting Action Fund have sued the commission after it approved new state House and Senate district maps they say violate new rules in the Ohio Constitution.
The court, comprised of four Republicans and three Democrats, will allow attorneys to jointly take one deposition of each Republican member of the Ohio Redistricting Commission: Gov. Mike Dewine, Senate President Matt Huffman, House Speaker Bob Cupp, Secretary of State Frank Larose and Auditor of State Keith Faber. Depositions are limited to two hours apiece and must be conducted by October 21.
The Ohio attorney general, representing Dewine, Larose and Faber, had pushed back on requests for depositions. Attorneys for Huffman and Cupp, the state's top two legislators, had argued they didn't need to cooperate with any discovery. The court ruled Thursday that commission members' attorneys must respond to plaintiff's questions and document requests by Tuesday.
The court denied plaintiffs' request for an independent commissioner to oversee discovery.
Justice Pat Dewine, the governor's son, has not recused himself from the case. He concurred in the decision to allow depositions but would have pushed back the deadline to respond to discovery-related by three days.
The plaintiffs accuse the panel of unconstitutional gerrymandering in drawing and approving maps that preserve a Republican supermajority in both chambers. The two Democrats on the panel, Sen. Vernon Sykes and Rep. Emilia Sykes, both of Akron, voted against the maps.
The lawsuits argue the maps don't correspond to the statewide preferences of voters, a requirement added to the Constitution in 2015. The votes case in recent statewide elections average about 54% Republican and 46% Democratic, while the approved maps gave Republicans between 67% and 69% of legislative seats.
If the Ohio Supreme Court finds violations, justices will ask the commission to amend their maps. If more than six House districts or two Senate districts need to be amended, the map is declared invalid and the commission must draw a new one.
Jessie Balmert contributed reporting.
Jackie Borchardt is the bureau chief for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch and other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.