LIMA, OH (WLIO) - Ohio's Senate President is expecting a close outcome in next week's special election.
Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman was the keynote speaker for the Lima Rotary meeting Monday afternoon. Huffman was one of the proponents of putting State Issue 1 on the ballot, which would increase the threshold of citizen-backed constitutional ballot issues from a simple majority to 60% approval. It would also require that at least five percent of the electors of each of the 88 counties must sign petitions for statewide issues to be considered for the ballot. Huffman says polls are predicting a close vote on August 8th and he has seen a lot of people raising awareness on the issue.
"In my estimation, I don't think I've ever seen a more significant grassroots activity for an election," commented Matt Huffman, (R) Ohio Senate President. "People are being proactive versus than being asked, people are out putting up signs, making phone calls, doing all the other things, so I think it will be a close race, a close issue."
Huffman says when state lawmakers return from summer break, they will be also looking at redistricting for the general assembly since there was not a map that was ruled constitutional and also for the congressional districts. A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling vacated the Ohio Supreme Court's ruling last July, that the congressional map drawn by the redistricting commission favored Republicans. The U.S. Supreme Court ruling orders the state court to reconsider the map congressional drawn by the commission.
