DeMora Denounces Republican Power Grab

Today, state Senator Bill DeMora (D-Columbus) listened to sponsor testimony in the Senate General Government Committee on Senate Joint Resolution 2 and Senate Bill 92.

"These two pieces of legislation are nothing more than blatant power grabs by the Republican Party," said DeMora. “Republicans know that they are on the wrong side of every issue that working Ohioans care about and they are doing everything they can to rig the game in their favor. They know that if they let Ohioans make their own choice at the ballot box, they’ll lose on every issue.”

Both S.J.R. 2 and S.B. 92 have been introduced by Senators Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) and Rob McColley (R-Napoleon). S.J.R. 2 proposes an amendment to the Ohio constitution, requiring any future constitutional amendment to be approved by at least 60% of the voters, instead of by a 50% majority. S.B. 92 would expand the circumstances under which a special election may be held.

The August special elections that this legislation would create would be costly and Ohioans would have to foot the bill. The August election held in 2022, because the Ohio Redistricting Commission failed to pass constitutional maps, on time cost Ohioans an extra $20 million and had only an 8% voter turnout rate.

Just four months ago, the Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 458, to eliminate August special elections. Secretary Frank LaRose testified in favor of H.B. 458 claiming that August elections have “embarrassingly low voter turnout rates” and that “this isn’t how democracy is supposed to work.”

“The hypocrisy of the sponsors of these bills and Secretary LaRose to now want an August special election, when they all supported ending them a few short months ago, is beyond rational thought,” continued DeMora. “Instead of wasting $20 million on an election, why don’t we use this money to pay for more nurses, social workers, and mental health professionals?"