Dover-New Philadelphia voters express opinions on state Issue 1
NEW PHILADELPHIA ‒ A steady number of residents showed up at the polls Tuesday morning in the Dover-New Philadelphia area to vote on state Issue 1, which would make it harder to change the state constitution.
More on Issue 1: August special election generates interest among voters in Tuscarawas County
Issue 1 would require 60% of the vote to enact new constitutional amendments instead of a simple majority. It also would:
Require citizens who want to place an amendment on the ballot to collect signatures from at least 5% of voters from the last gubernatorial election in all 88 counties, instead of the current 44.
Eliminate a 10-day cure period that allows citizens to replace any signatures deemed faulty by the secretary of state's office.
Here's what voters had to say:
Tom Donizetti, Dover
I've voted no because I think leave well enough alone.
Becky Lesh, Dover
Today, I voted yes. I believe that changing it would help Ohio to stay the way that we want Ohio to stay. I come from a state that is not so conservative as Ohio, and I enjoy living in a state that's more conservative than where I come from.
Matt Ritzert, Dover
I don't like all of the out-of-state money being poured in on both sides of the issue. I think the issue is a little more complicated with the fact that it's not just voting on a 60% majority vote, but they also included provisions to make it much harder to even get something on the ballot. I can understand a 60% vote, but to make it so difficult to get it on the ballot raises some questions. It's tied up so much with the abortion debate. I think you need to vote on each issue on its own merits.
Robert Keller, New Philadelphia
Hopefully, everybody reads it. What's on the ballot doesn't match what you see on television or even media. The other thing that bothers me the most is the amount of spam, between emails, phone calls, text messages from numbers I don't recognize or people I don't know. It's just the amount of money that has been spent by super funds and people that don't necessarily have Ohio's constituents in their best interest has been disturbing. Pass or fail, my biggest concern is just going forward it's going to make things really rough for things to pass or get changed in the future. It seems like it's all pivoting around the change in Roe v. Wade, and it's sad that it's taken that to motivate people to vote to change it. It should have been something not as polarizing to change the constitution.
Donna Zarnick, New Philadelphia
It's a ploy to suppress voting rights basically. I believe that there's going to be some upcoming votes on issues that the current Legislature doesn't want to see passed. It would suppress our vote. All three changes would do that. It's not fair to expect more than a 50% plus one vote. It's not fair to expect 5% of every single county based on the governor's vote, instead of based on the total of people registered to vote. People just need to get out there and make sure that they know what's going on, know who they elect because right now, it's a mess. Because of the problems with the Supreme Court, it's just making more and more problems in the state, where a small minority is making the laws for everyone. We're going backwards. I witnessed all of the problems that we had in the past and how we fought so hard to make sure that everyone had freedoms. So, it's just disappointing.
Steve Metzger, New Philadelphia
I'm against it. It's always been a majority, and it's seems unnecessary for a special election just for that.
Reach Jon at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.
This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Dover-New Philadelphia voters express opinions on state Issue 1
