August is usually a sleepy time politically in Ohio with families preparing for a new school year and county fairs dotting the calendar. This particular month is different. Ohio voters are casting their ballots on Issue 1, and on Aug. 8 it will be known if the state constitution will be amended.
Issue 1 has generated nationwide interest and ad spending because it could impact a November vote that will determine if an abortion amendment is added to the state constitution.
If passed, Issue 1 would require that a proposed amendment to the state constitution receive 60 percent support from voters compared to the current 50 percent plus one model.
The measure would take effect in time for the abortion amendment that will appear on the Ohio ballot in November.
Issue 1 would also mandate collecting signatures from at least 5 percent of voters in all 88 counties from the last gubernatorial election for amendment campaigns to get on the ballot instead of 44 counties.
Passage of the measure would also eliminate a 10-day “cure period” that allows amendment campaigns to collect additional signatures if they initially fall short. That rule would not take effect until January 2024 and would not impact the abortion issue in November.
On the federal level, amending the U.S. Constitution requires 66 percent approval from the House and Senate, and then ratification from 75 percent of the states.
The Democratic National Committee, the NAACP, the League of Women Voters, and Planned Parenthood all require 60 percent or more to change their organizational constitutions, Ohio Republican state Rep. Beth Lear noted.
During a July 26 press conference, Cleveland Democratic Mayor Justin Bibb said, “So we can use our real political power to change the culture of guns in this state, it starts by voting no on Issue 1 by the way, to make sure that we can maybe put a ballot measure on our Constitution to have common sense gun reform.”
Issue I is backed by groups like the Associated Builders and Contractors of Ohio, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio National Federation of Independent Businesses, the Ohio Restaurant Association, and the Ohio Hotel and Lodging Association.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican who recently entered the 2024 Ohio U.S. Senate race, said that Issue 1 “protects the Ohio constitution from out-of-state interests who have figured out Ohio’s constitution is an easy mark.” Requiring a 60 percent majority would “put Ohio into the mainstream with most other states when it comes to protecting our constitution,” Mr. LaRose added.
Polls Show Different Results
Two polls released in July tell different stories about what might happen on Aug. 8.A USA Today Network/Suffolk University poll showed that 57 percent of the respondents oppose Issue 1. That survey included 500 likely Ohio voters and had a 4.4 percent margin of error.
Later in July, an Ohio Northern University poll indicated that 42 percent backed Issue 1 while 41 percent opposed it, and 17 percent of the respondents were undecided. The poll contacted 675 likely voters and carried a 3.7 percent margin of error.
“Issue 1 is the only item on the August statewide ballot and while it is aimed at increasing the thresholds to amend the Ohio Constitution, it is clear that it is mainly about making a constitutional amendment to enshrine abortion access in the Ohio Constitution more difficult,” said Robert Alexander, founding director of Ohio Northern University’s Institute for Civics and Public Policy and professor of Political Science. “We find a closely divided electorate, with partisanship explaining much of the divide.”
In urban, suburban, and rural communities across Ohio, lawns and street corners are lined with signs for and against Issue 1. The measure has generated national attention, mostly because of potential implications for abortion.
Mr. LaRose confirmed on July 25 that an amendment on abortion will appear on the November ballots.
The Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom—a pro-abortion coalition that includes Planned Parenthood, Pro-Choice Ohio, the Abortion Fund of Ohio, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Ohio, and the Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights—introduced “The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety,” which would add a Section 22 to Article 1 of the state Constitution.
This would remove Ohio’s parental notification legislation when a minor wants an abortion and would permit abortion to the point when a fetus can survive outside of the womb, which is typically around 24 weeks into a pregnancy.
In 2019, the Ohio state legislature passed a “heartbeat” bill that bans abortion around the six-week mark. That went into effect after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson ruling last year. Almost immediately, the law was challenged and remains tied up in court.
Similar battles are being fought across the nation as state legislatures pass abortion restriction measures that have yet to take effect. Ohio is being closely watched since it is the only state this fall to vote on the issue.
“As goes Ohio, so goes the rest of the nation,” Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis said.
Ohio Democratic Party Chairwoman Elizabeth Walters expressed optimism after Mr. LaRose announced the proposed abortion amendment would be in the November ballot.
Abortion at the Center of Issue 1
Most Ohio Republican lawmakers support Issue 1 and say their backing is not solely related to abortion. Mr. LaRose said in June that Issue 1 “is 100 percent about keeping a radical, pro-abortion amendment out of our constitution.”Republicans have a supermajority in the state House and Senate. GOP supporters say that Issue 1 will protect the state constitution from special interest groups.
Republican state Rep. Brian Stewart and Republican state Sen. Rob McColley wrote a joint statement in support of Issue 1 and said, “By raising the threshold for constitutional amendments to 60 percent, the People will ensure amendments have widespread support and tell special interests that our Constitution is not up for grabs.”
“Ohioans must know: Issue 1 was designed to trick voters into giving away their rights—and the special interests who bought the August 8 special election will stop at nothing to end 100 years of majority rule in Ohio,” One Person One Vote said in a June statement.
A group of Democratic state lawmakers released a statement saying: “If this amendment passes, it will apply to every single amendment on any issue Ohioans will ever vote on—you name it, just 40 percent of voters will decide. We all deserve to make decisions that impact our lives. We must protect our freedom to determine our future, not permanently change our constitution to give up our rights.”
Even faith-based groups differ about Issue 1.
“Christians must defend life. That’s why Issue 1 is so important to us,” said Jeremy Westbrook, executive director and treasurer of the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio.
“If we endorse or enshrine abortion, that removes the most foundational right that any of us can have, and that’s the right to life,” Mr. Westbrook added.
At a “Faith Votes No” rally in Columbus in July, Rabbi Hillel Skolnik of Congregation Tifereth Israel said that he opposes Issue 1 on moral grounds because “every person should be represented equally.”
“If you try to allow for the tyranny of the minority … that is the opposite of the message of what Moses reminded the Israelites so many years ago: that, yes, we listen to God and yes, we follow the commandments, and yes, we also listen to the people equally, Mr. Skolnik said.
Fueled by the proposed abortion amendment, national special-interest groups are pouring millions of dollars into ad spending for and against Issue 1.
Scott Schweitzer, an Ohio-based Republican political strategist who monitors political ads, told reporters that groups in favor of Issue 1 have spent around $5.9 million compared to about $5.3 million by opponents.
One Person One Vote is the main backer of the campaign to prevent Issue 1 from passing. Protect Women Ohio, an organization created to defeat the November ballot initiative that would add abortion to the state constitution, is responsible for around three-quarters of the ad spending to support Issue 1. Protect Our Constitution has contributed most of the remaining financial backing.
Ohio Voters Differ With Opinions
Diana Fessler, a Republican, served four terms in the Ohio House and three terms on the Ohio State Board of Education. A self-admitted pro-life mother of six children, she has spoken out against Issue 1.“Unfortunately, voters have been led to believe that requiring a 60 percent affirmative vote would be better because it would make it harder to amend our Constitution. Sixty percent may seem reasonable to some people, but it is a double-edged sword,” Ms. Fessler wrote in a message to The Epoch Times.
“Consider the math. In an imaginary football game, Michigan scores 41 points, and Ohio scores 59 points—topping Michigan by 18. Using the long-standing majority rule, Ohio wins,” she noted. “Using the identical scores but applying the 60 percent rule, Ohio loses. Game over. Why?
“Using the analogy above and applying the 60 percent rule means the opposition only needs 41 percent votes to block an amendment. Imagine winning 59 percent of the points rather than 50 percent plus one and still losing an election. The status quo is the real winner,” Ms. Fessler added. “So, strategically, if State Issue 1 passes, from then on, it would be the minority determining the outcome of all future elections on amendments to the Ohio Constitution.”
Some Ohio conservative voters who talked to The Epoch Times expressed concern that the movement to defeat Issue 1 was more organized and vocal than groups who support the measure—until recent days.
Krista Cobb is a former school board member in suburban Dayton who recently moved to a rural property in Champaign County.
“When you go to rural areas and everywhere you look there seem to be more signs against Issue I than for it,” Ms. Cobb said. “Only in recent days have you seen more ‘yes’ signs, and unfortunately, there are people who are swayed by how many signs they see.
“People are being told this is just about abortion, and that’s not true,” Ms. Cobb added. “Democrats want to make it easier to make changes on issues like the Second Amendment and elections. And they want decisions to be made by 44 counties instead of all 88. It’s important that Ohioans in every county have their voice heard and their vote counted.”
Gary Click is a pastor and an Ohio state representative in northwest Ohio. He agrees with Ms. Cobb.
“Urban areas tend to lean more to the left and rural areas tend to be more conservative. Everyone should be included and counted. Voters from Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati should not determine what happens based on population density,” Mr. Click said. “And changing the constitution should not be easy. It should require at least 60 percent support so it is beyond a doubt that is what most Ohioans want.”
“Social media and corporate money from outside the state have made it easier to misinform voters, which makes it even more important to raise the bar to change the constitution,” Mr. Click added.
