The Supreme Court of Ohio dismissed two challenges to the state’s congressional maps on Thursday, maintaining the use of maps that had previously been criticized as unconstitutional. The petitions, which contended the maps were unfairly partisan, had been submitted earlier that week.
The court granted one dismissal in Neiman v. LaRose, and another dismissal in League of Women Voters of Ohio v. LaRose. Both suits were lodged shortly after the adoption of Republican-drawn congressional maps by the Ohio Redistricting Commission on March 2, 2022.
During their motion to dismiss, the legal counsels for Neiman stated that the petitioners’ desired relief would necessitate “further proceedings”. They noted the urgency of these proceedings as a delay might result in Ohioans not having a resolved congressional map ahead of the 2024 election. However, citing Article XIX of the Ohio Constitution, they also pointed out that the map would inevitably have to be redrawn following the 2024 election.
The legal team for the League of Women Voters of Ohio took a comparable stance in their motion to dismiss. The document states, “Litigation regarding redistricting plans is often a protracted process, and in this case has already required two rounds of decisions by this Court…Ohioans have borne the considerable costs and frustration of years of districting disputes, with each round of map-drawing and litigation generating additional confusion and concern about the fairness of their representation.”
The proceedings have moved slowly partly because the US Supreme Court repealed the “independent legislature” doctrine through a ruling in Moore v. Harper in June. This effectively nullified a July 2022 decision from the Ohio Supreme Court that found the disputed map to be unduly favoring the Republican Party and disadvantaging the Democratic Party.