Ohio Election Day Roundup: Results for National Elected Offices, State Offices, and Statewide Ballot Issues

After a long campaign season for the Ohio midterm election, voting numbers from county boards of elections are pouring in and being added to the unofficial results on the Ohio Secretary of State’s Website.

According to the Ohio Secretary of State, results are unofficial until they have been reviewed and certified once the official canvass has been completed by November 29th.

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Hold on Ohio Abortion Restriction to Last at Least Two More Weeks

Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas Judge Christian Jenkins (D) this week indicated he will extend his hold on a significant Ohio abortion-restricting law for two additional weeks. 

Jenkins’s decision prolongs the effect of a decision he made last week to obstruct the Heartbeat Act’s implementation, with the initial freeze to last two weeks. The state General Assembly passed and Governor Mike DeWine (R) signed the bill (SB 23) in 2019. The legislation, which prohibits aborting unborn children who have detectable heartbeats, could not take effect until this year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide. 

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Ohio Supreme Court Rules for Gibson’s Bakery over Oberlin College

Ohio’s Supreme Court on Tuesday sided with Gibson’s Bakery in its libel case against Oberlin College, declining to hear the school’s appeal and permitting the family-owned establishment to collect over $36 million in damages. 

The litigation against Oberlin and Dean of Students Meredith Raimondo stemmed from uncorroborated accusations of racism that the Gibson family believes initially cost their store half its patronage. In June 2019, a Lorain County court ordered the school to pay the bakers $32 million. About $4.5 million in interest has accumulated since that ruling. 

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Ohio Pro-Abortion Amendment Anticipated to Appear as Ballot Question

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio announced this week they are working to place a state constitutional amendment protecting abortion rights on the election ballot in Ohio. 

The prospective effort comes as abortion proponents’ confidence surges after Kansas voters rejected a constitutional amendment that would have stipulated that the Kansas Constitution does not contain the right to terminate a pregnancy failed by a vote of 59 percent to 41 percent. 

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