Ohio Legislature Passes New Congressional Map Amid Surprise Deal with Democrats
In a surprise move, Republican and Democratic lawmakers in Ohio have reached an unexpected deal on the state's new congressional map. The bipartisan agreement, approved by the state's redistricting commission on Friday morning, sees the GOP gain a slight edge ahead of next year's midterm elections.
Under the proposed map, two Democratic-held districts are shifted to the right while one is moved to the left, with 10 districts favoring Republicans and two strongholds remaining Democratic. This marks a compromise after Democrats largely expected the commission to reach a stalemate. The deal comes as an end to fears of a more egregious gerrymander being drawn by Republicans if the commission had failed to agree.
The new map is unlikely to be subject to a voter referendum, which would have required nearly 250,000 signatures in just 90 days – a daunting task during the holidays and winter months. In contrast, Democrats avoided this worst-case scenario, with lawmakers on the redistricting commission facing criticism from protesters who accused them of "selling out" Ohioans.
The proposal sees Democratic Reps. Greg Landsman and Marcy Kaptur facing more competitive districts under the new map, while Rep. Emilia Sykes' district becomes slightly more Democratic. Despite this, both lawmakers have announced their intention to run for re-election under the new lines.
The emergence of Ohio's new map comes as part of an unusually aggressive mid-decade redistricting cycle, sparked by President Donald Trump's efforts to shore up the Republican party's narrow U.S. House majority. Other states, including Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and Indiana, have already drawn maps boosting Republicans or preparing for their own redistricting efforts.
As the process continues, Democrats are urging voters to hold lawmakers accountable next year. In a statement, Suzan DelBene, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, praised her party's negotiators for preventing an even more egregious gerrymander, but acknowledged that the map is "not fair" for Ohio voters.
With the new congressional map in place, Ohioans will be watching closely to see how this compromise plays out ahead of next year's elections.
In a surprise move, Republican and Democratic lawmakers in Ohio have reached an unexpected deal on the state's new congressional map. The bipartisan agreement, approved by the state's redistricting commission on Friday morning, sees the GOP gain a slight edge ahead of next year's midterm elections.
Under the proposed map, two Democratic-held districts are shifted to the right while one is moved to the left, with 10 districts favoring Republicans and two strongholds remaining Democratic. This marks a compromise after Democrats largely expected the commission to reach a stalemate. The deal comes as an end to fears of a more egregious gerrymander being drawn by Republicans if the commission had failed to agree.
The new map is unlikely to be subject to a voter referendum, which would have required nearly 250,000 signatures in just 90 days – a daunting task during the holidays and winter months. In contrast, Democrats avoided this worst-case scenario, with lawmakers on the redistricting commission facing criticism from protesters who accused them of "selling out" Ohioans.
The proposal sees Democratic Reps. Greg Landsman and Marcy Kaptur facing more competitive districts under the new map, while Rep. Emilia Sykes' district becomes slightly more Democratic. Despite this, both lawmakers have announced their intention to run for re-election under the new lines.
The emergence of Ohio's new map comes as part of an unusually aggressive mid-decade redistricting cycle, sparked by President Donald Trump's efforts to shore up the Republican party's narrow U.S. House majority. Other states, including Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and Indiana, have already drawn maps boosting Republicans or preparing for their own redistricting efforts.
As the process continues, Democrats are urging voters to hold lawmakers accountable next year. In a statement, Suzan DelBene, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, praised her party's negotiators for preventing an even more egregious gerrymander, but acknowledged that the map is "not fair" for Ohio voters.
With the new congressional map in place, Ohioans will be watching closely to see how this compromise plays out ahead of next year's elections.
So I'm thinking, it's pretty wild that Republicans and Democrats were able to come together on a map like this. I mean, you'd think they'd be at each other's throats, but I guess they wanted to avoid the drama of a voter referendum. And honestly, I don't blame them - trying to get 250k signatures in just 3 months would've been crazy!
...just a bunch of politicians trying to hold onto power, if you ask me 
. Can't we just have fair maps for once? 
And what's up with all the backroom deals and 'surprise' agreements? It's like they're hiding something from us 
. At least now Democrats can say they prevented a super gerrymander from happening, but I'm still skeptical 
Anyway, I guess Ohioans are gonna be keeping a close eye on this one and seeing how it all plays out come next year. Can't help but wonder if Democrats got taken advantage of a bit in the whole "selling out" deal 
when it comes to redistricting 
. Remember when we used to have fair maps that actually represented the people who lived in each district? 
. Anyway, I guess this deal is a step in the right direction for Ohioans 
. Still, it's gotta be frustrating to have lawmakers making decisions behind closed doors without us having a say 
. What's up with all this redistricting stuff, anyway? It just seems like a whole lot of gamesmanship 
.
. I mean, the Republicans are gonna have a slight edge which is not super surprising but it’s still kinda interesting to see how this plays out. And what’s crazy is that Democrats avoided having to go through a referendum which would’ve been super hard for them to get enough signatures together.
. It's not perfect, though - those Democrats are still gonna be fighting for their seats. And with Suzan DelBene saying it's "not fair" to Ohio voters... I think she's right 
im not gonna lie tho, its kinda crazy how much pressure theres on dem redistricting comms to get this done 
and now we gotta wait and see if the repubs are actually going to hold their promise 
still good job to those who fought for this deal, like suzan delbene and whoever negotiated with the repubs 
! I mean, sure, it's not a perfect deal for everyone, but at least it's better than that gerrymandered mess they could've come up with if they'd stuck to their guns. Ohioans are gonna be keeping a close eye on how this plays out next election season, and I gotta give credit where credit is due – those lawmakers on the redistricting commission are straight-up heroes for avoiding a total disaster 
! Now, let's talk about some productivity hacks...
No more crazy-gerrymandered districts 
. Now, let's see how this plays out in the next elections... will Ohioans be happy with the new map? 
which might make it more competitive for dem reps 
but lets be real, voting is still key 
. Voters are the ones who lose in this mess 
.
just read about ohio's new cong map and i'm like wth... it seems like democrats kinda gave up on their districts but at least they avoided a worse gerrymander lol meanwhile republicans get slightly more reps 
what's next? more electoral shenanigans in the midterms?! 
. and i'm not gonna lie, it is kinda cool that they were able to avoid a voter referendum. gotta give them some props for that! 
. The fact that Republicans and Democrats could come together to reach a compromise is a welcome change from the usual partisan bickering 
. Nonetheless, it's heartening to see lawmakers putting aside their differences to produce a map that's more representative of Ohioans' interests 
. As the process continues, it'll be essential for voters to stay engaged and hold elected officials accountable for ensuring fair and competitive elections 
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