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 1. Opinion




PLOT TO UNDERMINE THE WILL OF VOTERS ON MARIJUANA AND ABORTION WON’T END WELL
FOR OHIO REPUBLICANS: LESLIE KOUBA


 * Updated: Nov. 12, 2023, 5:41 a.m.|
 * Published: Nov. 12, 2023, 5:30 a.m.

Ohio Republican lawmakers, who plan on subverting the will of the voters after
they delivered mandates on abortion and marijuana Tuesday, would be wise to
watch their step and consider the future of their political careers, writes
columnist Leslie Kouba. In this photo: Demonstrators hold signs in support of
Issue 1. (Jeremy Pelzer, cleveland.com)
 * 
 * 

By
 * Leslie Kouba, cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio – For those of us who believe the government should not be able
to force pregnancy upon people, tension knots are slowly untangling, and the win
is sinking in.

Issue 1, the constitutional amendment guaranteeing reproductive rights, passed
by a significant statewide margin, making the majority a definitive voice.

Issue 2, the initiated statute to legalize recreational marijuana, had even
wider support, showing both Republicans and Democrats believe in enjoying life
with a little sunshine in their pockets. Cool.



So why are state-level Republicans already planning how to dilute the majority
decisions that we, the people, just made?

Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens and Senate President Matt Huffman made
statements after the two issues were called. They conveyed that they and their
Republican peers, who make up the current majority in the Ohio legislature, will
find ways to undermine what Ohio voters decided on both issues.

Wait. What?

And here I believed ballots gave voters the last word on a topic. You know,
majority rule and all. Silly me. But seriously, who are these people, and are
they bonkers?

Cleveland.com reporter Zachary Smith’s analysis showed how each Ohio county
voted for Issue 1 and Issue 2. The two maps are almost identical and strongly
mimic the outcome map of the special election in August.

The four largest counties, Cuyahoga, Franklin, Hamilton and Summit, where a
combined 70.4% of voters supported Issue 1, led the state in getting it passed.
These votes were a significant factor in the statewide margin of 511,234 votes
in support of the amendment, protecting the right to abortion services. The rest
of Ohio counties had slimmer vote margins, and 48 of Ohio’s 88 counties actually
voted down the issue.



Oh. Maybe Huffman and Stephens, and the lawmakers who agree with them, hail from
one of those 48 counties, and they’re trying to represent their gerrymandered
districts!

Now that would make it easier to see why all the not-so-urban Republicans in the
Statehouse think they have some legs to stand on to dilute the new
constitutional amendment and make the weed law more their style. But those legs
are wobbly, at best, especially as we look towards 2024, when so many Ohio
lawmakers will seek re-election.

It is really not the time to alienate voters. But is it ever? The wisest
politicians will learn to read the crowd and reach compromise in spite of
differences in a reasonable manner and with collaboration.

Smart politicians will also recognize that Millenial and Gen Z voters show
little interest in the two-party system. They tend to support Democratic
candidates and lean left on issues, according to Brookings Institute. Within
five years, these independent voters will be the majority of the electorate.
Both Democrats and Republicans need to wake up and realize the two-party system
will likely wane, as this largest generation of Americans takes up the lead.



There are two dynamics, evidenced by the disrespectful post-vote behavior of our
Republican leaders in Columbus.

First, they appear to be blind or maybe they simply close their eyes. They are
not seeing how voters are evolving. They’re not reading the direction of the
political winds that younger voters are generating, and they underestimate the
strength of empowered women. They don’t realize their own machinations are going
to alienate people, rather than fortify their constituencies.

Secondly, religion is currently conflated with governing. Those who claim their
religion determines their policy positions and decisions have mixed the two, and
this is slippery-slope stuff. Freedom and democracy are the true foundation of
American government, and it all starts with the governed, the people, the
voters, us.

The most dangerous thing conservative politicians could do right now is to keep
pushing what they assume they can get away with. Their gerrymandered
constituencies are on the brink of breaking up, and the masses who have been
activated by the fight for abortion rights will always stand guard.



Repeating history makes some of us wiser. Women, in particular, remember how
they’ve had to fight for their rights, repeatedly. They stand ready, guarding
that for which they’ve worked so hard.

And here’s the kicker – they also stand watch for others. You can count on it.
So, you best be careful who you offend, elected leaders.

The majority will roar again, whenever necessary.

Leslie Kouba, a lifetime resident of Northeast Ohio and mother of four
completely grown humans, enjoys writing, laughing and living in Cleveland with
her wife, three cats and a fat-tailed gecko named Zennis. You can reach her at
LeslieKoubaPD@gmail.com.





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