A closer look at Ohio's new political maps

State of play: Republicans currently hold roughly 70% of legislative seats despite earning around 56% of the statewide vote in recent election cycles and could retain their supermajorities under the new maps.

• Groups including Common Cause Ohio and the ACLU of Ohio are considering filing lawsuits because of gerrymandering, Cleveland.com reports.
• Legal challenges would need to be heard before a December filing deadline for legislative candidates.

Zoom in: The new maps offer the parties a mixed bag when it comes to Franklin County districts, an Axios analysis finds.

Ohio House of Representatives: Democrats currently hold 10 of 11 Franklin County districts, but could fare worse going forward.

• The 2024 map has 12 local districts. Based on recent electoral history, Democrats are expected to win between 8 and 11 seats.

Ohio Senate: The two parties currently split four Franklin County districts, but Democrats should gain a seat.

• The 2024 map has four districts, with three favoring Democrats by double-digit margins.

The intrigue: Republican Sen. Michele Reynolds of Canal Winchester could run for a second term in the lone Republican-leaning district.

• Fellow Republican Sen. Stephanie Kunze of Hilliard was drawn out of her seat but is term-limited from running again next year regardless.

What's next for redistricting

The commission's vote comes as activists pursue redistricting reform for next year's ballot that would remove politicians from the process.

Yes, but: Some advocates of fairer maps are concerned that since Democrats on the commission voted in favor of the new districts, the argument that Republicans hold unfair control over map designs is undermined.

• One commission Democrat defended the vote to the Ohio Capital Journal as a compromise to ward off maps "that would have devastated us even more."

Flashback: The Ohio Supreme Court previously rejected numerous maps for unconstitutionally favoring Republicans.

• But the present court's makeup is more favorable to Republicans than before as former Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor left office in 2022.

What they're saying: O'Connor, a Republican, who ruled with Democrats against those earlier maps, slammed the new districts in a statement as a "bipartisan gerrymander by politicians who decided to protect themselves and their friends."