Holder-backed lawsuit challenges Ohio map
Former Attorney General Eric Holder’s National Redistricting Action Fund filed a lawsuit Monday over Ohio’s fouryear congressional map, saying the mapmakers gave the GOP an unfair advantage in a state that’s not solidly red.
Gov. Mike Dewine, a Republican, signed the map into law Saturday. Senate Bill 258 passed the Gop-controlled Ohio Legislature along party lines despite Democrats’ criticism.
“That Ohio’s new congressional map, signed by Gov. Dewine on Saturday, is a partisan gerrymander in violation of the state constitution is quite clear,” said Marina Jenkins, NRAF’S director of litigation and policy. The group filed its lawsuit Monday at the Ohio Supreme Court on behalf of 12 Ohioans.
Ohio voters approved changes to the state constitution in 2018, making a new
process for drawing the maps. According to the complaint, Ohio lawmakers and Dewine went against Ohio voters’ wishes when they adopted the congressional map.
“In enacting the 2021 Congressional Plan, the General Assembly – and Governor Dewine – seek to turn the clock back to before 2018, when it had free rein to gerrymander maps as it wished. However, the legal regime has changed, and the court should not countenance the General Assembly’s and the governor’s attempt to flout the wishes of Ohio voters,” according to the complaint.
Ohio Senate Republicans’ spokesman John Fortney called the lawsuit “another far-left attempt by Barack Obama’s attorney that leads a liberal group to try to lecture Ohioans about what’s fair.”
Ohio lost a congressional seat during the latest U.S. Census because the state’s population grew at a slower rate than the nation’s. Ohio Republicans currently have a 12-4 advantage in the U.S. House of Representatives. Under the new map, Democrats can safely claim two seats – one in Cleveland and one in Columbus.
Democrats in Hamilton County were hoping for a congressional district that would give their candidates a better shot. However, the Gop-controlled Legislature split the county into three districts that would favor Republicans, combining the city of Cincinnati with Warren County.
Republicans touted their map as competitive while Democrats called it rigged.
Because the map passed without Democrats’ support, it will last four years instead of 10. While intended as a penalty to encourage bipartisan negotiations, the shorter turnaround could be an advantage for the GOP if they retain control of the Ohio Legislature.
Holder launched the National Democratic Redistricting Committee shortly after the 2016 presidential election to challenge Republican-drawn maps at the state level. The National Redistricting Action Fund sued Ohio over its statehouse maps, which it says disproportionately favor Republican candidates in violation of the Ohio Constitution.
Other legal challenges to the map are expected. They can be filed at the Ohio Supreme Court or in federal court if a violation of the Voting Rights Act is alleged.
Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.