COLUMBUS, Ohio — As the Ohio Redistricting Commission goes through a fourth round of mapmaking, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said late Wednesday that General Assembly races will be left off the May 3 primary ballot.
What You Need To Know
- Ohio House and Senate primaries will not be among the races counted May 3
- As of Thursday, there are no approved boundaries for the Ohio General Assembly for the 2022 election
- The Ohio Supreme Court disallowed three previous maps drawn by the Ohio Redistricting Commission, which only had GOP support
- Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said the Ohio General Assembly must come up with a new primary date for Ohio House and Senate races
After the Ohio Supreme Court shot down the third set of boundaries drawn by the Ohio Redistricting Commission for Ohio House and Senate seats, LaRose said there would not be enough time to place races on the proper ballots.
Early voting for the May 3 primary starts April 4. As county boards of elections have started preparing ballots for the primary, ballots may include General Assembly races. LaRose said that Ohio House and Senate races that may appear on the May 3 ballot will not be counted.
Also because the state central committee races use Ohio Senate boundaries, those races will not be included on the May 3 primary ballot.
Other primary contests, including the gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races, will remain on the May 3 ballot for now, LaRose said. He also said the congressional primary will also remain on May 3, but the third set of U.S. House maps are still going through a legal challenge in the Ohio Supreme Court.
LaRose said the Ohio General Assembly will need to find a new date for Ohio House and Senate primaries. One option LaRose gave is to move all primary races to the same day at a later date.
The Ohio Redistricting Commission is utilizing two independent mapmakers who are tasked with drawing the fourth set of maps.
The boundaries are required by U.S. law to be redrawn following the release of the decennial census.