Ballot Reform Measure Introduced

House leadership this week introduced a bipartisan sponsored ballot reform measure, House Joint Resolution 19 (HJR19). The resolution, co-sponsored by Sarah LaTourette (R-Chesterland) and Glenn Holmes (D-McDonald), would change both Ohio’s constitutional amendment process and citizen-initiated statute process.

Ohio’s constitutional amendment process has been long criticized as too easy to gain ballot access, and often the constitution was considered “for sale” to out-of-state special interests.

HJR19 would tighten the qualifications for a constitutional amendment on the ballot to pass by, among other things, increasing the percentage of electors required to approve the amendment from a simple majority to 60%.

Conversely, the resolution would also lower the threshold for citizen-initiated statutes to make it to the ballot. 11/29/2018