Plot to undermine the will of voters on marijuana and abortion won’t end well for Ohio Republicans: Leslie Kouba

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.