Skip to main content

Ohio Redistricting Disaster: A Timeline

Brian Pearson
Social share icons

Ohio will see a bifurcated primary election in 2022 thanks to the disfunction of Republicans on the Ohio Redistricting Commission. In the meantime, we'll take a trip back to the start of the redistricting process and breakdown how we got here - Courtesy of Ballotpedia. 

PROCESS BEGINS

  • April 26, 2021: The U.S. Census Bureau delivered apportionment counts.
  • August 12, 2021: The U.S. Census Bureau delivered redistricting data to states in a legacy format.
  • August 31, 2021: Members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission released legislative redistricting proposals.
  • September 9, 2021: Members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission released legislative redistricting proposals.

STATE LEGISLATIVE MAPS APPROVED

OHIO CONSTITUTION VIOLATED

CONGRESSIONAL MAPS APPROVED

FIRST SET OF STATE LEGISLATIVE AND CONGRESSIONAL MAPS RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL

SECOND SET OF STATE LEGISLATIVE MAP RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL

  • February 7, 2022: The Ohio Supreme Court struck down the Ohio Redistricting Commission's second set of approved legislative maps and ordered the commission to redraw them within 10 days.
  • February 9, 2022: Ohio legislative leaders said they would not draw a new congressional map, meaning the Ohio Redistricting Commission assumed responsibility for drawing the map.

OHIO SUPREME COURT ORDER VIOLATED

THIRD SET OF STATE LEGISLATIVE MAP RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL, OHIO SUPREME COURT DETERMS CONGRESSIONAL MAPS NOT WITHIN THEIR JURISDICTION 

  • March 7, 2022: The Ohio Supreme Court rejected the Ohio Redistricting Commission's redrawn legislative maps and ordered the commission to redraw them.
  • March 18, 2022: The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that it did not have jurisdiction to overturn the redrawn congressional map approved by the redistricting commission on March 2.
  • March 21, 2022: A lawsuit was filed challenging the March 2 congressional map (Neiman v. LaRose).
  • March 28, 2022: The Ohio Redistricting Commission voted to approve redrawn legislative maps.

FOURTH SET OF STATE LEGISLATIVE MAPS RULED UNCONSTITIONAL

  • April 14, 2022: The Ohio Supreme Court rejected the Ohio Redistricting Commission's redrawn legislative maps and ordered the commission to redraw them.
  • April 20, 2022: A federal court ruled that if legislative maps were not approved by the state court by May 28, the federal court would order an August 2 primary election date using the third set of maps approved by the Ohio Redistricting Commission.