Hypothetically Speaking

At a news conference at the Statehouse yesterday, leaders of the Reform Ohio Now coalition announced that they had already gathered over 350,000 signatures for its set of three amendments to the Ohio constitution that would end much of the partisan election tinkering in the state.

The RON amendments need almost 330,000 valid signatures from registered voters, including enough signatures in at least 44 counties that they exceed 5% of the voters in the last gubernatorial election in each of those counties. Despite apparently having enough signatures, RON backers are making a smart move and vow to continue the signature drive thru the Aug. 10 deadline that it needs to meet in order to get the measures on the ballot.

RON organizers were joined at the news conference by significant new endorser. From the Gongwer News Service (subscription required):

“For us, it is truly about reforming the system and truly making certain every citizen’s voice counts,” said Chellie Pingree, the national president of Common Cause who joined supporters at the Statehouse event. She said the widening Statehouse scandals constitute an “increasingly devastating story in the state of Ohio on how not to run a Democracy.”

It also became apparent that RON opponents prime strategy is to attack those groups who initiated RON instead of the merits of the proposals.

Rep. Kevin DeWine (R-Fairborn), the sponsor of last year’s election law rewrite (HB1, Special Session, 125th General Assembly), cited the apparent out-of-state funding and makeup of the coalition in declaring, “This is not a good government initiative. It is pure partisan politics.”

But RON backers pointed out DeWine's own partisan antics with regard to election finance. Again from Gongwer:

Rep. Kevin DeWine (R-Fairborn), the sponsor of last year’s election law rewrite (HB1, Special Session, 125th General Assembly), cited the apparent out-of-state funding and makeup of the coalition in declaring, “This is not a good government initiative. It is pure partisan politics.”

[. . .]

Ned Wigglesworth, an analyst for Sacramento, California-based TheRestofUs.org who also attended the news conference, said the Ohio GOP had taken the wrong step in hiking contribution limits through HB1.

“The question is: should wealthy interests be granted dominion over Ohio elections? The Ohio political class answered that question with a resounding ‘yes’ when they jacked contribution limits to a level only the very richest sliver of society can afford,” Mr. Wigglesworth said.

Touché.

The Dispatch, PD (AP sourced), Dayton Daily, and Canton Repository have stories.