Now, the state will need to go through the redistricting process once more, this time to set the congressional districts for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections.
In June, Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima, told reporters that behind-the-scenes talks would take place over the lawmakers’ summer recess.
“I think there will be some probably informal negotiations starting in August, with the idea that it may be possible to have a bipartisan bill in September,“ Huffman said. ”If that doesn’t happen, the redistricting commission will meet in October, and if the commission doesn’t come up with a bill, then the legislature is required by November 30 to file a redistricting bill.”
Ohio House GOP spokesperson Olivia Wile confirmed with this outlet that there’s not yet a finalized plan to address redistricting before the looming September deadline.
Meanwhile, redistricting has become increasingly politically charged over the summer, as political leaders in both parties brace for a contentious 2026 midterm election cycle.
Texas is underway with an effort to redraw its 38 congressional districts in an attempt to secure five more GOP seats in the U.S. House following pressure from President Donald Trump.
In response, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California threatened that his state would take the same tack in favor of Democrats, thus setting off a cascade of Republican and Democratic leaders more openly talking about using gerrymandering as a political bludgeon.
It remains to be seen what sort of impact this national conversation will have on Ohio’s upcoming process.
The Ohio Constitution has measures intended to protect against partisan gerrymandering on the state legislative level, and to a lesser extent on the federal level. But it’s unclear to what extent these measures can actually prevent gerrymandering.
The state’s current House delegation includes 10 Republicans and five Democrats, with three of those Democrats holding only a slight advantage in their districts. The Ohio Capital Journal reported last month that Ohio’s senior U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno wanted the state’s new maps to give Republicans a 12-to-3 advantage.
House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn, D-Cincinnati, told reporters in June that such an advantage for Republicans would corrode Ohio’s ability to be fairly represented in Congress.
“It should be pretty even if we want to accurately represent the people of Ohio,” Isaacsohn said. “Right now, it’s already deeply out of whack, and I find it incredibly insulting to the people of Ohio that our elected officials would suggest we should have even less representative government through the redistricting process.”
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Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
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