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Common Cause Ohio gathers to discuss Issue 1

By Kristen Hainkel 3 min read

Common Cause Ohio, a non-profit and non-partisan voter advocacy organization, is encouraging Ohioans to vote no on Issue 1.

The organization coordinated a rally in Marietta on Monday.

Issue 1 is a proposed increase in the percentage of voter support to amend the state's constitution from 50% plus one to 60% plus one. A special election will be held Aug. 8 for this measure.

"It's really important that we're all coming together. (Common Cause Ohio) represents the 200-plus organizations that are voting no, coming together in a coalition. It represents hundreds of thousands, possibly even millions of Ohioans with labor groups and everybody else," said Mia Lewis, associate director for Common Cause Ohio.

Citizen-petitioned amendments have been in the Ohio State Constitution since 1912.

"We strongly oppose Issue 1. For more than 110 years Ohio voters have had freedom and rights to put a constitutional amendment directly on the ballot with a simple majority," said Buddy Malone, Parkersburg-Marietta Building & Construction Trades Council Business Manager. "We need to preserve the sacred principle of one person, one vote."

"All Ohioans want the freedom to make the decisions about things that affect their lives," Lewis said.

She added, "If Issue 1 were to pass on Aug. 8, it would end majority rule and it would end one person, one vote because one person's vote would be more powerful than another person's vote. If you were voting no, you would have more power than if you were voting yes."

Another speaker at Monday's event, the Rev. Dr. Felix Burrows, Honorably Retired of the Presbyterian Church, added, "It will stop special interests from ending majority rule. And it will protect our freedom to determine our future."

Another facet of Issue 1 would require petitions from all 88 counties instead of the current 44 county rule for an amendment to the state constitution.

"There's also changes to make it harder to get on the ballot. They're changing it from 44 counties and 5% from the last gubernatorial election to 88 counties. That means one county could veto what everybody else wants." Lewis said.

Lewis said Issue 1 is nonpartisan and all voters should participate in the election.

"This is a nonpartisan issue. We're just saying, vote no on this issue. We're not saying vote Democratic or vote Republican," she said.

Lewis said Ohio state legislators placed Issue 1 in a summer special election in order to sneak it past voters.

She introduced a phrase called Mine Plus Nine. All of the attendees needed to find nine people they knew and talk about the August election with them. Then those people could find nine people in their network to talk to.

"I was at an event of 20 people the other night and none of them knew about the August election," said Betsy Cook of Living Democracy. "I was shocked. We have got to get the word out."

Lewis said a bill like Issue 1 hasn't been seen before in Ohio's history.

"It's never been done before in Ohio to change our constitution in such a significant way in an August special election," she said.

One attendee asked if polling places would be the same during this election.

"The Board of Elections is required to send you a mailing if your polling place is going to change. Usually they don't finalize those until about two weeks before the election. I would wait a little bit before checking in with them," Lewis said.

Lewis said voters can find more information about this initiative at www.votenoinaugust.org.

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