This guest post by Mark Brown is published by Election Law Blog. Here is an excerpt:

The last few weeks in Ohio have proved tumultuous in terms of redistricting for upcoming elections. On January 12, 2022 the Ohio Supreme Court, in a bipartisan opinion, concluded that the General Assembly’s redistricting plans for the State House and Senate violated Ohio’s Constitution. Contrary to the Ohio Constitution’s mandate that Ohio’s House and Senate districts be drawn to “correspond closely to the statewide preferences of the voters of Ohio,” the Republicans who presently control Ohio’s General Assembly and Redistricting Commission drew maps awarding Republicans super-majorities in both houses. The Ohio Supreme Court thus ordered the Republican-dominated Ohio Redistricting Commission to draw new maps that abided by the State Constitution’s proportionality requirement.

The Redistricting Commission “tried” (charitably speaking) by offering maps that were only a bit better in terms of proportionality, leading the Ohio Supreme Court on February 7, 2022, in another bi-partisan opinion, to again rejected the maps. The Court accordingly sent them back to the Republican-controlled Commission for another do-over, with instructions that the new maps be completed within 10 days.

Ten days passed with nary a map being considered, let alone adopted, and the Redistricting Commission thus returned to the Ohio Supreme Court empty handed.  Republicans on the Commission lamely claimed that no proportionally acceptable maps could be drawn other than the ones they had already submitted. The task assigned the Commission by the Ohio Supreme Court, Republicans asserted, was constitutionally impossible.

Continue reading here.