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With deadline looming, Ohio Redistricting Commission sets first meeting to redraw legislative maps

 DANIEL KONIK
DANIEL KONIK

The first meeting of the panel that has been ordered to again draw maps for Ohio House and Senate districts is set for this morning – with a deadline to produce those maps less than a week away.

The announcement of Tuesday 10am meeting of the Ohio Redistricting Commission was the first communication about the commission since the Ohio Supreme Court ruled the Ohio House and Senate maps unconstitutional.

The announcement came from the offices of House Speaker Bob Cupp (R-Lima) and Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima). And it has an important note:

That’s important because the commission’s two Democrats said they were shut out of the process that resulted in the maps approved in September. And Republicans Gov. Mike DeWine, Auditor Keith Faber and Secretary of State Frank LaRose testified in the lawsuit over the maps that they had “no involvement” in creating them, though they voted for them.

The composition of the Ohio Redistricting Commission has changed slightly. House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes has stepped down from that position, and newly elected Leader Allison Russo will now serveon the panel.

The announcement notes the meeting on Tuesday, January 18 starts at 10am in Room 313 in the Statehouse. There's also a website that will be accepting public comment.

The Ohio Supreme Court says the new maps must be produced by Monday, January 24. It's unclear what might happen if that deadline is missed. It did miss a deadline early in the process, and some deadlines were missed in the Congressional map drawing process. The Court ruled Friday that the Congressional map is also unconstitutional and will need to be redone.
Copyright 2022 The Statehouse News Bureau. To see more, visit The Statehouse News Bureau.

Karen is a lifelong Ohioan who has served as news director at WCBE-FM, assignment editor/overnight anchor at WBNS-TV, and afternoon drive anchor/assignment editor in WTAM-AM in Cleveland. In addition to her daily reporting for Ohio’s public radio stations, she’s reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio News and other news outlets. She hosts and produces the Statehouse News Bureau’s weekly TV show “The State of Ohio”, which airs on PBS stations statewide. She’s also a frequent guest on WOSU TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, a regular panelist on “The Sound of Ideas” on ideastream in Cleveland, appeared on the inaugural edition of “Face the State” on WBNS-TV and occasionally reports for “PBS Newshour”. She’s often called to moderate debates, including the Columbus Metropolitan Club’s Issue 3/legal marijuana debate and its pre-primary mayoral debate, and the City Club of Cleveland’s US Senate debate in 2012.