Ohio Redistricting Commission passes statehouse maps already struck down by Supreme Court

Republicans on the Ohio Redistricting Commission approved statehouse maps on Thursday that were already struck down by the Ohio Supreme Court as they wait out the clock on a federal court decision.

The Ohio Redistricting Commission had until 9 a.m. Friday to submit a fifth round of state House and Senate maps. The Ohio Supreme Court gave the commission 22 days to craft a new solution, but the group squandered nearly all of them – not working together on new districts or rehiring mapmakers to craft maps for them.

Republicans wanted to wait until after the May 3 primary to meet. Gov. Mike DeWine contracted COVID-19. But the real reason for the delay was the federal court.

Two federal judges on a three-judge panel forecasted that they would pick maps by May 28 and set an Aug. 2 primary if redistricting leaders didn’t act. The maps they would pick were approved by four Republicans on the commission on Feb. 24 and later found unconstitutional by the Ohio Supreme Court.

Those maps match Ohio’s voting preferences with Republicans winning about 54% of the vote and Democrats 46% in statewide races over the past decade. But many of the so-called Democratic districts are more like tossups and there are no similar GOP districts. That lack of partisan symmetry was a problem for the Ohio Supreme Court.

Thursday's vote came over the objections of Democrats, who urged the commission to pass a modified version of maps created by two out-of-state mapmakers. GOP auditor Keith Faber, who voted against the Feb. 24 maps, opposed them again over concerns that too many districts are split to favor Democrats.

These districts would only be in place for the 2022 election.

"I don't think that this is over," House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, said. "I think we will continue to be back here again and again. It's disappointing that they are so egregious in their disrespect for the rule of law and voters, but here we are."

Secretary of State Frank LaRose said election officials would be under too much of a time crunch to use any other map unless lawmakers adjust voting deadlines. County boards of elections already certified candidates' paperwork based on those maps, so some of the work is already done.

DeWine said Wednesday that the commission had an obligation to make an effort and suggested mapmakers adjust the third maps to create a new version that both parties could agree on. But the governor ultimately voted to resubmit the third maps the next day, arguing the election timeline put them in a bind.

Members of the public who gathered to watch Thursday's hearing jeered at Republicans on the commission throughout the meeting. After the vote, they chanted, "Hold them in contempt!"

Jessie Balmert and Haley BeMiller are reporters for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio redistricting: Commission fails to pass new legislative maps