Abortion rights will be Issue 1 both on the ballot and in the minds of most voters going to the polls. On this week's episode of Snollygoster, Ohio's politics podcast from WOSU, host Mike Thompson discusses the politics of abortion with long-time political reporter Ken Rudin, host of the Political Junkie podcast.
Snollygoster of the week
Ohio Democrats and their election reform allies have been fighting for months against gerrymandered legislative and congressional maps. They have won most of these cases in court, but lawmakers have ignored the rulings and allowed Ohioans to vote on unconstitutional maps.
One of these cases, which challenged the 2022 congressional maps, is still pending. However, this week, Democrats and their allies asked the Ohio Supreme Court to dismiss the case. They said that they "strongly believe this is the best result under the circumstances for the people of Ohio, who deserve certainty about the congressional map that they will be voting under in this cycle, at the very least."
This sounds altruistic, but Democrats are not being entirely truthful. They did better than expected with the 2022 map, winning five seats to Republicans' 10. While this is not ideal, it is better than the previous map, which gave Republicans 12 seats. Democrats fear that if they continue to fight the case and lose, Republicans could draw a new map that would be even worse for them.
The decision of whether or not to dismiss the case is ultimately up to the Ohio Supreme Court. However, the Democrats' decision to ask for dismissal is a strategic one that is based on their belief that it is in the best interests of their constituents.
If you have a suggestion for our "Snollygoster of the Week" award, a question or a comment, send them to snollygoster@wosu.org.