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Ohio Supreme Court rejects 2nd GOP-drawn congressional map

The ruling will not affect the Aug. 2 special primary election, but will impact future Congressional elections in Ohio.

TOLEDO, Ohio — Editor's note: The above video originally aired July 1.

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the state's most recently drawn Congressional district map is invalid.

The court -- which has played a central role in the fight this year over how to redraw both the state's Congressional and state legislative maps using a new framework approved by ballot measures in 2015 and 2018 -- also ordered lawmakers to bring them a new map within 30 days.

The ruling will not impact the upcoming August or November elections.
Ohio's General Assembly has 30 days to draw a new map that would be used in 2024.

The court ruled the map approved by the Ohio Redistricting Commission back in March was gerrymandered to unfairly benefit Republican candidates.

Tuesday's ruling means November elections for Ohio state representatives, Ohio state senators, and the U.S. House of Representatives will all use unconstitutional maps.

The General Assembly has 30 days to draw a new map, but if the elected leaders can't adopt a map in that time, the process once again goes to the Ohio Redistricting Commission, which also would have 30 days to get the job done.

In May a federal court panel on Friday ordered Ohio to hold an Aug. 2 primary using the third set of Statehouse maps approved by the Ohio Redistricting Commission, despite a rebuke of the plan by the state's high court.

The court acted after giving Ohio a Saturday deadline to come up with a new map for legislative districts, a divided three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio said in its ruling.

The May federal court decision came in a lawsuit brought by a group of Republican voters that initially sought to salvage legislative primaries scheduled for May 3 by using the commission's third set of district lines, which also was found unconstitutional.

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