Special to the Gazette
Observers of Ohio politics were not surprised that Issue 1 was defeated. The move by Ohio’s Republicans to limit our democracy was seen mostly as a way to make it nearly impossible for supporters of abortion rights to pass their amendment codifying those rights in November. Around the nation, several other states had already passed such amendments, but all by less than 60%. So, though Republicans at the Statehouse knew a majority of Ohioans favor letting women make their own decisions about their bodies, they figured they could placate their extremist supporters by making it just too hard for democracy—rule of the people—to work for Ohio. It was a longshot, asking voters to give up their own rights, but at least the Statehouse Republicans could remain true to their big-dollar and extremist supporters.
In addition to the majority of Ohioans favoring women’s rights, there was strong opposition to Issue 1 from Ohio’s unions, such as AFL and OEA, and various other groups. Union leaders knew that the real motivation for the effort to derail Ohio democracy with a 60% requirement may have been aimed at stopping progressive groups from bypassing the heavily gerrymandered legislature and raising the minimum wage, for instance. Ohio’s minimum wage now stands at $10.10 per hour—not the lowest or highest in the nation, but in any case, not a living wage. And there are rumors that a minimum wage issue could be placed on an upcoming Ohio ballot.
To the state’s...
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