Following a ruling by the Ohio Supreme Court, the Ohio Ballot Board has modified the language for a proposed constitutional amendment appearing on the August ballot. This revision clarifies the scope of the amendment, which pertains to raising the threshold for passing future constitutional amendments in the state from a simple majority to 60%.
The revised language now specifies that the proposal aims to "elevate the standards to qualify for an initiated constitutional amendment and to pass a constitutional amendment." This change addresses the court's concern that the original wording could mislead voters about the amendment's impact. The previous language implied the changes applied to all constitutional amendments, when in fact they only affect citizen-initiated amendments, not those put forward by the state legislature.
Ohioans have voiced both support and opposition to the proposed amendment. The revised language aims to provide greater clarity to voters ahead of the August election. (AP Photo/Samantha Hendrickson, File)
While the board adopted the change regarding the type of amendment affected, it rejected calls from opponents to further alter the language. Opponents had argued for replacing the word "elevating" with terms like "changing" or "modifying," believing these to be more neutral. The board, however, maintained "elevating."
The updated summary now explains that citizen-led initiatives must gather signatures equal to 5% of the gubernatorial vote in every county. However, it doesn't explicitly state that this amendment would double the number of counties required for signature collection, from 44 to all 88. Additionally, the summary omits the fact that Ohio's current simple majority standard has been in effect since 1912, a point opponents had hoped to emphasize.
The summary does inform voters that the proposed 60% threshold would also eliminate the current grace period that allows campaigns falling slightly short on signatures additional time to gather them.
