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Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ohio Ballot Board votes to split Ohio Equal Rights Amendment into two
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Petitioners of an Equal Rights Amendment cleared the hurdle to start collecting signatures to be on the November 2026 ballot Wednesday morning, but the clearance came with a catch. 'I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt, but it does feel political,' Representative Terrence Upchurch (D-Cleveland) said. 'I do believe it's political because I think that, looking at what is being proposed, it's pretty simplistic in nature. I think it is one issue. It's cut and dry.' Each time a person or a group wants to get a proposal constitutional amendment on an Ohio ballot, there are several steps to accomplish. One of them is the certification, by the Ohio Ballot Board, that the proposed amendment is only about one issue. On Wednesday morning, the board voted to split the Ohio Equal Rights Amendment into two. 'It seems apparent to me that it would be good to give [voters] those as two separate amendments,' Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R-Ohio) said. 'Is it conceivable that there are voters out there that would support one part of this but not support the other part of this?' Hot pot restaurant with robert servers closes after 1 year 'If that were the standard, then that would be true of every proposal that goes before Ohio voters,' legal counsel for Ohio Equal Rights Corey Colombo said. 'There would aspects [voters] like and don't like. But that doesn't change the fact that this is all under the same umbrella.' What are the, now, two amendments? The first would remove language from the Ohio Constitution that bans same-sex marriage. That language, though still in the state constitution, is not currently applied thanks to Obergefell v. Hodges, a U.S. Supreme Court case that legalized same-sex marriage in 2015. Lis Regula, a leader with Ohio Equal Rights, said with the possibility that the case is reconsidered, Ohioans should act fast. 'Right now [same-sex marriage is] entirely dependent on Obergefell, that decision, if it changes, I think there's going to be a lot of people who are surprised that 'oh crap, Cousin Joe and his husband aren't married anymore, what does this mean,'' he said. 'That is a rude awakening that I don't want to see people have to struggle with.' The amendment would delete existing Ohio Constitution language that bans same sex marriage and replace it with a provision that expressly allows it. If passed, it would read: 'The State of Ohio shall issue marriage licenses to individuals the age of eighteen and above and not nearer of kin than second cousins, and the state and its political subdivisions shall recognize and treat equally all marriages regardless of race, sex, or gender identity. Religious organizations and members of clergy shall have the right to refuse to solemnize a marriage.' The second amendment would add a new part to the Ohio Constitution that prohibits discrimination based on 'race, color, creed or religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression regardless of sex assigned at birth, pregnancy status, genetic information, disease status, age, disability, recovery status, familial status, ancestry, national origin, or military and veteran status.' Backers of the amendment argued that both this provision and the same-sex marriage one fall under the same category. 'In this case, the proposal, the petition, all relates to the single general purpose of equal rights of all Ohioans,' Colombo said. But the problem Republicans took with this portion of the amendment is the portion regarding transgender Ohioans. 'What brought us to this point is seeing the number of already existing laws that infringe on people's rights here in Ohio,' Regula said. Here's a quick look-back: In January 2024, Ohio lawmakers based one bill that both bans gender affirming care for minors and bans transgenders athletes from playing on teams that align with their gender identities. In November 2024, Ohio Lawmakers passed a 'bathroom ban.' It requires both public and private K-12 schools and all Ohio universities to prohibit non-gendered bathrooms and will ban transgender students from using bathrooms that align with their gender identity. If passed, this amendment could call some of those laws, passed by the Republican supermajority at the Ohio Statehouse, into question. 'How is it the same purpose to allow biological men in the same locker room as girls, when they're not consenting, how is that the same general purpose of allowing people of the same sex, consensually, to get married?' Senator Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) asked. Colombo said, 'There's nothing in the language that specifically discusses bathrooms,' but Gavarone took issue with the word 'accommodations.' To get on the ballot, petitioners need to gather 415,000 valid signatures for each amendment in order to get one or both on the ballot. Their goal is to put the questions in front of voters in November 2026. 'We want to be able to have time to have deep conversations with people and really talk about 'what do equal rights mean to you as an Ohioan, what does it mean to be protected from infringement on your ability to make a living for yourself, provide for your family and develop in an appropriate way,'' Regula said. With the November 2026 goal in mind, Ohio Equal Rights has until July 2026 to meet the signature requirement. On Wednesday morning, Regula said he is not sure if they will take the Ohio Ballot Board's decision to split the amendment up to court. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. 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Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Overturning gay marriage ban and adding LGBTQ protections just got harder. Find out why.
Ohio Republicans added another hurdle for proponents of a measure to overturn Ohio's dormant ban on same-sex marriage and expand anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ residents. In a party-line vote, Ohio Ballot Board divided the Ohio Equal Rights Amendment into two issues: one to overturn a 2004 vote that defined marriage as between one man and one woman and another that would prohibit state and local government from discriminating against more than a dozen protected groups, including transgender Ohioans. To make the ballot, proponents will either have to collect double the number of signatures to get both proposals approved or sue the Ohio Ballot Board to overturn its decision. Backers are eyeing the 2026 ballot at the earliest, said Lis Regula, a member of Ohio Equal Rights' leadership committee. During the July 9 meeting, the ballot campaign's attorney Corey Colombo argued that the proposed constitutional amendment was one issue because it encompassed equal rights for all Ohioans. But Republicans contended that transgender issues and marriage equality are two different things with two different levels of support from voters. While Ohioans might support marriage between any two people in the Ohio Constitution, "they may not want to support creating 12 new protected classes under a bunch of different circumstances," said Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican who leads the Ohio Ballot Board. Rep. Terrence Upchurch, D-Cleveland, said Republicans divided the measure because of politics. "It's one issue. It's cut and dry." "There's definitely political will for using trans people to divide Ohioans," Regula said. "The hopeful side of me appreciates that they are recognizing the support for same-sex marriage. That's great. We've made progress. We still have progress to make." If approved by voters, the Ohio Equal Rights Amendment would prohibit state and local government from discriminating based on: "race, color, creed or religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression regardless of sex assigned at birth, pregnancy status, genetic information, disease status, age, disability, recovery status, familial status, ancestry, national origin or military and veteran status." The sweeping measure would expand the list of protected individuals far beyond the national Equal Rights Amendment, which aims to prohibit discrimination based on sex. Ohio ratified that amendment in 1974, but it has not been recognized as part of the U.S. Constitution because of missed deadlines and other disputes. The proposal would also overturn a 2004 vote that defined marriage as between one man and one woman. This language has been dormant since a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision led by Ohioan Jim Obergefell legalized gay marriage in America. As of 2023, Ohio had 22,400 same-sex married couples, according to the most recent federal census data. "Marriage equality has been going strong now for 10 years, and the sky hasn't fallen. Society hasn't collapsed," said Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood. "What happened is you have families who have standing, whose children can feel good and talk about their families just like every other kid at school, no matter what the configuration of their family is." But proponents of marriage equality worry that the Obergefell decision could be overturned by an unfriendly U.S. Supreme Court. "I think it is reasonable to believe that it is under threat," said Regula, citing the language used in the decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Supporters of the proposed constitutional amendment want to overturn Ohio laws that penalize people with HIV for donating blood or having sex without disclosing their HIV status. More recently, Republican lawmakers banned transgender students from using school bathrooms that match their gender identity and banned gender-affirming care for transgender minors. "Those discriminatory laws make Ohio less of a welcoming place and make it a place where fewer people are interested in coming," Regula said. Opponents say these are losing issues at the ballot box. "To bring such an unpopular constitutional amendment like this forward is one, shockingly appalling, but also really dumb after Sherrod Brown just lost his Senate seat over these issues," said Aaron Baer, president of the Center for Christian Virtues. Republicans crafted attack ads against Brown for voting against amendments that would have stripped funding from schools and colleges that allowed transgender girls to play in women's sports. "I have a hard time seeing them get a lot of traction with this," Baer said. CCV was a driving force behind the 2004 constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage in Ohio. The group looking to put the Ohio ERA before voters faces a tall task. If they want voters to approve both measures, they must collect an additional 1,000 valid signatures for each proposal, go before Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost for initial approval and return to the ballot board. Then, proponents would have to collect at least 413,487 valid signatures, or 10% of votes cast in the most recent governor's race, for each measure or 826,974 in total. Those signatures must meet a minimum threshold in half of Ohio's 88 counties. "While I applaud the spirit of the work that they are trying to do, I just think it's a real uphill battle that they're going to be faced with," said Antonio, the state's first and currently only openly gay lawmaker. For more than a decade, Antonio has repeatedly introduced the Ohio Fairness Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The GOP-controlled Legislature has not moved forward on the fairness act. More: After 775K gay marriages, Americans are still fighting for rights 10 years later Antonio said a legislative fix is still the right path for protections against LGBTQ discrimination. "I struggle with asking the majority of people, the majority of the population, to grant equality by a vote to a marginalized group," Antonio said. "I will continue to fight for the Ohio Fairness Act, because I think it's the right thing to do." Reporter Laura A. Bischoff contributed to this article. State government reporter Jessie Balmert can be reached at jbalmert@ or @jbalmert on X. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: GOP move to ax Ohio same-sex marriage ban, add LGBTQ protections
