On June 27, the US Supreme Court ruled that the federal judiciary cannot rein in partisan gerrymandering. The Court had the opportunity to end partisan gerrymandering once and for all but instead a narrow majority chose to wash their hands of any responsibility for stopping rigged elections.

Now the fight for #FairMaps returns to the states. We here in Ohio are grateful that we have already passed restrictions on gerrymandering for both the state legislature and US Congress. Because of the hard work of Fair Districts volunteers and advocates, we passed anti-gerrymandering legislation in 2015 and 2018. Nevertheless, we still need to keep up the pressure on our legislators to let them know we are paying attention!

One practical step you can take is to take the Pledge to End Gerrymandering and urge your legislator to take the pledge as well. Here’s what the pledge says:

“I pledge to support and advance fair redistricting that is
transparent, non-discriminatory, and politically impartial.”

Common Cause Ohio has put together a Resource Kit to help you when you contact your legislator. The Kit contains:

1. A sample letter and postcard text to send to your Ohio Rep and Senator asking them to Take the Pledge to End Gerrymandering.
2. Background info and talking points for you on Ohio’s redistricting process and why we are pushing for legislators to take the pledge.
3. Resources for Social Media.
4. An info sheet to leave behind with your legislator.

Find your Ohio House and Senate representatives, and then reach out to make an appointment to get them to sign the pledge! Once you have an appointment let us know so we can see if others in your district want to join you for the meeting as well.

If you have questions or need help getting started, don’t hesitate to contact us here at Common Cause Ohio so we can lend a hand. The fight for #FairMaps continues!