College
Buchtel College of Arts and Sciences
Date of Last Revision
2026-05-28 08:02:32
Major
Political Science
Honors Course
POLIT 497 - Senior Honors Project in Political Science
Number of Credits
3
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Date of Expected Graduation
Spring 2026
Abstract
The failure of Ohio’s Issue 1, a redistricting reform amendment to the state constitution proposed in 2024, has been a topic of significant discussion. Though the controversial change to the language of the amendment made by the Ohio Ballot Board has often been identified as the consequential factor, the full implications of this change – why it was made, what it says about the meaning of ‘gerrymandering’ and ‘fairness,’ and why different groups define those words differently – have not been fully explored. This project will qualitatively assess whether the failure of Issue 1 was affected by definitional disagreements based on the valuation of different redistricting criteria by different political interest groups. It will do so through the examination of the historical, academic, and political environment surrounding Issue 1, including comments from notable advocates, and a comparative analysis of the results. Findings indicate that criteria-based disagreements did play a role in the failure of the ballot initiative, and particularly manifested through the Ballot Board decision, though additional factors that could have contributed to the partisan political environment of the issue also need further exploration. The potential impact of these findings and how these insights can benefit future redistricting reform efforts will be discussed.
Research Sponsor
Dr. David Cohen
First Reader
Dr. J. Cherie Strachan
Second Reader
Dr. Phillip Marcin
Honors Faculty Advisor
Dr. Ron Gelleny
Proprietary and/or Confidential Information
No
Community Engaged Scholarship
No
Recommended Citation
Klingler, Elena G., "Ohio Redistricting and the Meaning of Fairness" (2026). Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects. 2242.
https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/honors_research_projects/2242