OHIO — A citizen-initiated constitutional amendment on redistricting will appear on Ohio's ballot this November, Secretary of State Frank LaRose announced Tuesday. 

What You Need To Know

  • LaRose said the amendment garnered 535,005 signatures in 58 counties, exceeding the requirements

  • The proposed amendment removes elected officials from drawing congressional and state legislative districts and instead would create a 15-member panel with five Democrats, five Republicans and five independents

  • If voters pass the amendment, new maps would be created for the 2026 election cycle

LaRose said the amendment garnered 535,005 signatures in 58 counties. In order for the measure to appear on the November ballot, it needed a minimum of 413,487 signatures from at least 44 of 88 counties. 

The proposed amendment removes elected officials from drawing congressional and state legislative districts. The amendment would instead create a 15-member panel, consisting of five Republicans, five Democrats and five independents who would draw the maps. 

Along with elected officials, lobbyists and political consultants wouldn't be able to serve on the panel.

Now that the amendment will be on the ballot, the Ohio Ballot Board needs to approve the language, which it needs to do so by Aug. 22.

If voters pass the amendment, new maps would be created for the 2026 election cycle.

The amendment comes after a tumultuous years-long debate over Ohio's congressional maps. Republicans held the majority of seats on the Ohio Redistricting Commission on 2021 and 2022, in which the Ohio Supreme Court had ruled multiple times that the GOP unruly drew maps in their favor. After a slew of federal lawsuits, both sides of the aisle came together to create the current maps, which will be in place through 2026 if Ohioans don't pass the measure this November. 

Editor's Note: This story has been corrected to say that the current maps will be in place through 2026. (July 24, 2024)

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