Akron, OH’s Democrat-controlled City Council issued a statement this week lamenting the death of 25-year-old Jayland Walker while resisting prejudgement of the police officers’ who shot him.
Some Ohio Democrats, like their party’s state House caucus, continue to react differently, deciding the shooting lacked justification even before an external investigation concludes.
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Calling the actions of Republicans on the Ohio Redistricting Commission a “stunning rebuke of the rule of law,” the Ohio Supreme Court rejected for a fifth time a set of Ohio House and Senate district maps.
The decision came three days before a deadline set by federal judges, who said they would implement maps ruled unconstitutional if no new legal maps were created.
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More than two weeks after the Ohio Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a fourth attempt at establishing Ohio legislative districts, the Ohio Redistricting Commission scheduled a meeting.
That meeting will come two days before the court’s deadline to submit a new set of maps.
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Campaign finance requirements govern how much money candidates may receive from individuals and organizations, how often they must report those contributions, and how much individuals, organizations, and political entities may contribute to campaigns.
While campaign finance is not the only factor in electoral outcomes, successful fundraising can provide a candidate with advantages during a campaign. Fundraising can also indicate party momentum.
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The Ohio Supreme Court rejected a Democrat request to move the state primary to June, while independent map makers told the Ohio Redistricting Commission progress is slow creating a fourth set of state legislative districts.
The Supreme Court left the power to establish election dates and times in the hands of the General Assembly after Sen. Vernon Sykes, D-Akron, and House Minority Leader Allison Russo, D-Upper Arlington, filed a motion last week to have the court set a new date.
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Ohio voters will not be able to decide on candidates for the state Legislature during the May 3 primary after the state Supreme Court struck down new district maps for the third time.
In a letter to House and Senate leadership and Gov. Mike DeWine, Secretary of State Frank LaRose said it was no longer logistically possible to include district-specific legislative races on the ballots.
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The Ohio Redistricting Commission announced it will meet Thursday, the same day as a court-ordered deadline to submit its third effort at state legislative maps.
The meeting comes as the two Democrats on the commission have spent the past two weeks calling for meetings and after Republican State Auditor Keith Faber criticized Democrats for not calling a meeting themselves, despite commission rules that require both co-chairs to make the call.
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Ohio House Democrats called on Speaker Larry Householder (R-Glenford) to publicly condemn the threats of violence made against their leader and provide “additional security measures” for lawmakers.
“As Speaker and in recognition of your leadership role in the Ohio House of Representatives, you are granted additional security while in the statehouse,” House Democrats said in a letter to Householder last week.
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An Ohio senator is calling for a study that examines the “progress and challenges of African Americans in Ohio.” State Senator Sandra Williams (D-21) introduced Senate Bill 71, which would create and fund a 30-member committee to examine the contributions of, and issues facing, African Americans in the state. The bill is timed to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first documented arrival of African slaves to America. They arrived in 1619 on board the White Lion, a Dutch ship that landed at Point Comfort in Hampton, VA. According to the legislation, the first thing the group would do is look at all existing studies or reports from public or private research institutions in Ohio. The bill specifically mentions the Report of the Ohio Commission on Racial Fairness and the Governor’s Task Force Report on Black and Minority Health. Then they will issue an initial report including: The progress or lack of progress of African Americans in Ohio with respect to housing, transportation, health, education, employment, environment, business development, and any other policy area that the committee chooses to consider; The contributions and achievements by African Americans in Ohio; and Recommendations for addressing the challenges identified. Following that initial report, the committee will take four…
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