Ohio Mid-Term Ballot Today Is Crucial In Deciding Parental Rights

Ohio is seeing a massive voter turnout for a ballot in the midst of the summer, when voters are usually distracted by hot dogs, baseball, apple pie, and vacation. 

The votes cast today will decide Issue 1, which would reform the Buckeye State's constitution by raising the threshold for amendments to the state constitution. Parents rights advocates and prolife organizations say the change is needed to protect children from genital mutilation under the guise of "sex change" and ban a radical abortion agenda that could be adopted by other states.

If Issue 1 is approved, it would take effect immediately. This means that a planned November ballot measure to put "abortion rights" into Ohio's constitution would require the approval of 60 percent of voters, rather than the current requirement of 50 percent plus one. Critics of the November ballot issue assert that it is ambiguously worded, does not mention "woman" or "adult", and would thereby annul parental rights regarding genital mutilation and abortion for minors.

As of last week, 533,000+ Ohioans had voted in person or by mail since July 11, according to the Associated Press. That figure is nearly two times the the figures for early voting for two previous midterm primary elections in Ohio, including balloting for governor and Congress.

The significance of the mid-term ballot is not lost on observers of politics as Ohio has regularly voted for presidential election winners, including Donald Trump, for decades.

Advocates of voting 'Yes' on Issue 1 contend that special interest groups from out of state are seeking to circumvent voters and the state legislature to buy their way into Ohio's constitution. However, Democrats argue that passing the reform would restrain voters and give power away to politicians. 

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) stated earlier this year: "The purpose of Issue 1 is to silence the majority of Ohioans, and subject us to the policy preferences of a small group of extremists who have secured the favor of our unconstitutionally gerrymandered legislature." Mehek Cooke told Fox News Digital that the ACLU is putting out a "deceitful message." 

Supporters of Issue 1 have noted that the pro-abortion the ACLU and Ohio Democratic Party both require a 60 percent threshold for  removing board members, endorsing candidates and amending their own constitutions. The change to Ohio's constitution would put it in line with other states that have similar requirements for constitutional amendments.

The proposed constitutional amendment states that "every individual has a right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on contraception, fertility treatment, continuing one’s own pregnancy, miscarriage care, and abortion."

While Democrats have largely focused on abortion, there are signs that some Democrats want to make gun control changes to Ohio's constitution, too. 

Democrats have focused largely on abortion in their opposition to State Issue 1, but Cooke told Fox News Digital that progressives will attempt to strip away gun rights as well as the rights of parents in classrooms and other issues in states across the country.

"We can use our real political power to change the culture of guns in this state. It starts by voting no on Issue 1, by the way, to make sure we can maybe put a ballot measure on our state constitution to have commonsense gun reform," Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb said at a news conference.

In July, polling showed that voters were split on Issue 1. 42 percent would vote 'Yes', 41 percent would vote 'No', while 16 percent were neutral on the issue. 

Christians rallied in Norwood OH on August 6 to encourage voters to head to the polls.