OEA Hopes Court Decision on Maps Will Be Lesson Learned
“The Ohio Education Association celebrates the courage of the four State Supreme Court justices who have demonstrated their steadfast commitment to upholding the law and defending the will of the people. Ohio voters have spoken and have overwhelmingly demanded fair maps to ensure they will finally have a real voice in the Statehouse. It’s clear the state’s highest court will not let that voice be ignored any longer.
The Redistricting Commission reminds me of students I’ve had at times who spend more time creatively cheating than doing their work. Like those students, if the Redistricting Commission had put as much time into actually following the instructions of the Constitution as they did into coming up with creative ways of sidestepping the rules, they would have passed with flying colors. Moreover, if they had put as much work into following the will of the people rather than trying to get around the will of the people, we’d all have the maps we deserve.
The Commission members must understand that Ohioans have a constitutional right to choose their politicians, not the other way around, and Ohio’s broken mapmaking process must finally come to an end.
OEA looks forward to seeing the Commission’s third attempt at district maps and continues to put its faith in the State Supreme Court to ensure Ohio finally has fair maps if the Commission again fails to deliver on that promise.”
Ohio Education Association urges all Ohioans to participate in public redistricting reform hearings
“OEA urges members of the Commission to live up to the spirit of these reforms with a transparent and bipartisan process,” said OEA President Scott DiMauro. “Fair districts are vitally important and Ohio citizens should be provided with ample opportunities for meaningful input in the process.”
“Earlier this year, OEA sponsored a contest for K-12 students to develop fair maps and we had dozens of children who were able to do so on a tight deadline. Certainly, state leaders can do the same. For too long, partisan gerrymandering has subverted our democracy. OEA urges our members, contest participants, and all concerned Ohioans to participate in these public hearings.”
DEADLINE EXTENSION: Students, educators can now enter Ohio Education Association’s redistricting contest through June 1, 2021
“These district maps play a fundamental role in the strength of our democracy, but for too long, gerrymandered districts have allowed politicians to choose their voters, not the other way around,” OEA President Scott DiMauro said. “Thanks to reforms approved by voters like requirements to keep 65 of Ohio’s 88 counties whole and only let five counties be split more than twice, the redistricting commission is being held to new standards to ensure districts are politically competitive and elected leaders must represent the interests of all of their constituents, not just their favored few. Ohio’s students and educators have a chance to show them how that’s done.”
The Design Ohio’s Future contest is open to all Ohio middle and high school students as well as all OEA members. Entrants can design their maps using the free community webtool at https://districtr.org/, click the ‘share’ button, and submit their map’s URL on the OEA website at https://www.ohea.org/design-ohios-future-contest/ Full contest rules are on the submission page. All entries are due no later than June 1, 2021.
Winners will be selected for creating Ohio House, Ohio Senate, and Congressional District maps in the following categories: Most Politically Competitive, Fewest Community Splits, and Most Creative. All map entries must include districts that have roughly the same population size and are contiguous, and all entries except those in the Most Creative categories must adhere to redistricting requirements Ohioans voted for. The full requirements and a tutorial video can be found on the Design Ohio’s Future page of the OEA website.
A middle school student, high school student, and OEA member winner will be chosen in each of the nine categories. The winners will receive a special commemorative plaque and have their maps featured in the Ohio Schools magazine and on the OEA and All in for Equal Districts websites. The maps will also be shared with the state officials responsible for redrawing Ohio’s maps.
“What happens in our classrooms depends so much on what happens in our Capitol buildings,” DiMauro said. “Our current system is broken, and if we’re going to fix this mess, we need non-partisan, independent redistricting that ends map manipulation. We’re asking Ohio’s students and educators to lead the way.”
Ohio Education Association launches redistricting contest for students, educators
“These district maps play a fundamental role in the strength of our democracy, but for too long, gerrymandered districts have allowed politicians to choose their voters, not the other way around,” OEA President Scott DiMauro said. “Thanks to reforms approved by voters like requirements to keep 65 of Ohio’s 88 counties whole and only let five counties be split more than twice, the redistricting commission is being held to new standards to ensure districts are politically competitive and elected leaders must represent the interests of all of their constituents, not just their favored few. Ohio’s students and educators have a chance to show them how that’s done.”
The Design Ohio’s Future contest is open to all Ohio middle and high school students as well as all OEA members. Entrants can design their maps using the free community webtool at https://districtr.org/, click the ‘share’ button, and submit their map’s URL on the OEA website at https://www.ohea.org/design-ohios-future-contest/ Full contest rules are on the submission page. All entries are due no later than May 1, 2021.
Winners will be selected for creating Ohio House, Ohio Senate, and Congressional District maps in the following categories: Most Politically Competitive, Fewest Community Splits, and Most Creative. All map entries must include districts that have roughly the same population size and are contiguous, and all entries except those in the Most Creative categories must adhere to redistricting requirements Ohioans voted for. The full requirements and a tutorial video can be found on the Design Ohio’s Future page of the OEA website.
A middle school student, high school student, and OEA member winner will be chosen in each of the nine categories. The 27 winners will receive a special commemorative plaque and have their maps featured in the Ohio Schools magazine and on the OEA and All in for Equal Districts websites. The maps will also be shared with the state officials responsible for redrawing Ohio’s maps.
“What happens in our classrooms depends so much on what happens in our Capitol buildings,” DiMauro said. “Our current system is broken, and if we’re going to fix this mess, we need non-partisan, independent redistricting that ends map manipulation. We’re asking Ohio’s students and educators to lead the way.”