The proposed redistricting reform amendment will appear as Issue 2 on the Nov. 6 ballot, Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted announced Wednesday at the Ohio Ballot Board’s meeting.
The board voted along party lines to approve a summary of the amendment. Both Democrats on the five-member board voted against the ballot language, which was prepared by Republican Husted’s staff.
“I don’t think this is accurate or informative for voters,” said Mark Griffin, a Democratic appointee to the board.
The wording is based on a constitutional amendment proposed by a union-backed coalition of voting rights advocates called Voters First Ohio. The proposal would establish a new way of drawing the state’s congressional and legislative boundaries.
Husted, who has advocated for redistricting reform but staunchly opposes Issue 2, said he would have preferred putting the entire proposal on the ballot. But doing so would have been too costly, he said.
“It’s full of flaws and can be misused even moreso than the present system in the hands of somebody who doesn’t have the best interest of Ohio at stake,” Husted said.
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