A case study illustrating just how much Republicans despise democracy is now unfolding in the state of Ohio. It has the full-throated support of that state’s GOP-controlled legislature—and now, apparently, Republican Gov. Mike DeWine.
Stung by their failed attempt last August to stymie the ability of Ohio citizens to pass a referendum enshrining abortion rights in the state’s constitution, and still smarting at the subsequent success of Ohioans in passing a ballot initiative that did exactly that, Ohio Republicans are now employing a strategy designed to prevent a repeat.
They are attempting to draft a new law restricting citizen initiatives such as the 2023 abortion referendum, in exchange for allowing President Joe Biden to be listed on Ohioans’ ballot this November. They are also attempting to condition Biden’s access to the ballot on passage of a law that would allow the Ohio Supreme Court to more swiftly impose new abortion restrictions. This is foisted by the state’s Republican legislature, despite the passage of that pro-choice constitutional amendment last fall.
Not coincidentally, what they are proposing is the work of Christian activist organizations who see an opportunity to reinstate their anti-abortion agenda on unsuspecting Ohio citizens. Their efforts are also being championed by the state’s Republican senator, J.D. Vance, and his colleague, Bernie Moreno, who is challenging Democrat Sherrod Brown for the state’s other Senate seat. Last week, DeWine signed onto these efforts by his GOP colleagues, calling for a special session of the Ohio legislature, set to begin on Tuesday, with a vote expected later this week.
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