Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 7, 2023 / 13:50 pm
Pro-life organizations are urging Ohioans to vote yes on tomorrow’s referendum that would change the way constitutional amendments are adopted in the state. Early voting has been heavy, with more than 570,000 votes cast — a high turnout for an off-year August election.
Issue 1 would raise the threshold needed to adopt a constitutional amendment via ballot initiative from a simple majority to 60%.
Although Issue 1 would not directly affect any issues other than the constitutional amendment adoption process, it has become a proxy fight for a variety of political issues, which include abortion, minimum wage, and gun control. Individuals and political interest groups have spent about $20 million for or against the initiative and about 84% of that money came from out of state.
The current 50% plus one threshold has been used by interest groups to push for policies that would likely not pass through the Legislature or be signed by the governor.