On August 8th Ohio voters will head to the polls to decide on a significant change to the way the Ohio constitution gets amended. Unfortunately there are some problematic aspects to this ballot issue that prevent it from deserving to pass.
The mere fact that we’re voting in August absolutely reeks of hypocrisy. Just 6 short months ago, Governor DeWine, Secretary of State LaRose, and a chorus of Republican officials proudly touted that August elections have been abolished save for a narrow set of circumstances where they’re permitted, none of which apply in this case. The ink had barely dried on that bill before we started hearing calls from these same folks to put this issue on an August ballot. This is akin to a local government that declares everything they vote an an emergency in order to cover incompetence or malicious intent.
Issue 1 raises the bar to pass an amendment to 60%. That’s the one aspect of this I can get behind. Our state constitution, like our federal constitution, is a significant document, one that should not be altered lightly or on a whim.
This issue raises the bar to get amendments on the ballot to an unacceptably high level. The number of signatures to get on the ballot is already quite high as it is based on the turnout for the last gubernatorial election and those always have higher turnout than anything other than maybe a presidential election. Issue 1 requires a minimum number of signatures from all 88 counties, a tall order in still mostly rural Ohio.
The final aspect of issue 1 that needs to be considered is the “cure period” on signatures. This is a short window of time when a petitioner can submit additional signatures if part of their original submission was invalidated for a variety of technical reasons. I experienced this on a smaller scale in 2019. One of my petition sheets was tossed out by the board of elections because a sweet little old lady wrote something in the wrong place on the sheet. I had no choice but to start over gathering signatures. Not the end of the world for a local race where the required signature count is measured in dozens. For a state-wide race involving multiple boards of elections perfection is an unreasonably high standard.
It should be (relatively) easy to get an amendment on the ballot and hard to get it passed. Issue 1 fails that test for me. While it makes it harder to get an amendment passed, it also makes it unattainably hard to get an amendment on the ballot in the first place. Ballet initiative is our most powerful tool for holding legislators in check. Is it any wonder those same legislators are working so hard to cut our ability to petition the government off at the knees?
A bad law with good intentions is still a bad law. I’ve opposed flawed gambling legislation despite my support for the gaming industry and I’ve been a no on marijuana legalization measures even though I support the right of Ohioans to consume it if that’s their thing. There’s a version of Ohio 1 out there that I could get behind. This ain’t it.
Joe Combs Thoughts on Harrison, Ohio 