A new Congressional district map for the state of Ohio, passed by GOP lawmakers last month, went from 18 districts down to 16. The loss of two districts was necessary as a result of slow population growth in the state.
Other districts must consequently inflate, said Associate Professor of political science Bryan Marshall.
"The loss of two seats must come from somewhere, and the state must expand to cover their loss," he said.
According to Republican representative Margaret Conditt (District 55), this happens every decade.
"The legislation, H.B. 319, traditionally becomes law 90 days after the bill has been signed into law by the governor and will remain in place from Jan. 1, 2013 through Dec. 31, 2022," she said via email.
Republican representatives Courtney Combs (District 54), Timothy Derickson (District 53) and Conditt insist the map is legal and fair.
"Currently, Ohio has 13 Republican and five Democrat congressmen and women. Under the new map, each party would lose one congressional seat: two Republican seats were combined into one, two Democrat seats were combined into one, and one three-term Democrat was combined with a first-term Republican. There is nothing unfair about that," Conditt said via email.
Conditt also pointed to the similarity between this and the 2008 elections.
"Democrats held a majority of Ohio's congressional districts after the 2008 election (10-8) despite making the same claims in 2001 that the districts were ‘unwinnable' for Democrats," she said via email.
First-year Patrick Murphy said he is angered by the political arguments that he said are typical of the system.
"It is so frustrating that our elected officials can never seem to come to an agreement federally or statewide in order to serve their constituents," Murphy said.
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The political changes will not necessarily be felt in Butler County.
"Butler County under the new map will not likely see a change," Marshall said.
Conditt agreed that the changes are subtle for Butler County.
"Currently, Butler County resides in the 1st district, but mainly in the 8th district, represented by John Boehner, and with the new map, will still be in the 8th district," Conditt said via email.
If an agreement does not come, a federal judge will likely draw the map. As the result of this chaotic situation, elections may ask voters to select candidates statewide, which means someone across the state could be voting in your district.
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