Citizens Not Politicians Campaign Finance Filing Shows Broad Support from Diverse Constituencies   

Columbus, OH  — Less than a year since collecting its first donation, the nonpartisan statewide coalition Citizens Not Politicians has raised nearly $25 million from Republicans, Democrats, and Independents who support the coalition’s constitutional amendment to end gerrymandering in Ohio, according to the group’s campaign finance report filed today.

“This is a truly impressive show of support from Ohioans across the political spectrum,” said retired Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor. “Our coalition continues to expand for one simple reason: People of all political persuasions hate gerrymandering because it is fundamentally unfair and it only helps elite political insiders maintain power at the expense of the interests of everyday citizens.” 

Citizens Not Politicians’ campaign finance reports are available here. In their latest report, filed Wednesday, the campaign shows $23,033,931 raised this year towards qualification and passage of the Citizens Not Politicians Amendment, and has raised almost $24,847,296 since launching last year. 

More than 750 small-dollar contributors donated less than $200 each, including many who gave $2, $5 and $10 donations.

“These are fellow citizens who are giving what they can because they care about fairness and are sick and tired of politicians rigging the game so they can grow old in office and benefit themselves and their lobbyist friends,” O’Connor said.

The Citizens Not Politicians campaign has already begun reserving television and digital advertisement time for the fall campaign. “We’re in this campaign to win it, and to put power back where it belongs — with the citizens,” said spokesman Chris Davey. “We have been fundraising aggressively, and will continue to do so through Election Day.” 

The strong financial showing comes just a week after Secretary of State Frank LaRose certified the amendment for the Nov. 5 ballot, determining that the group had gathered a total of 535,005 valid signatures, with support coming from every county in Ohio from Republican, Democrat, and Independent voters . The amendment needed 413,487 valid signatures of registered voters and signatures from at least 5% of voters in 44 counties, and the campaign exceeded this requirement by achieving the threshold in a record 58 counties.

Next, the amendment will be sent to the Ohio Ballot Board, which has until Aug. 22 to write and adopt the language that will appear on the Nov. 5 ballot to “properly identify the substance of the proposal to be voted upon.” (Ohio Constitution, Article XVI, Section 1). The Ballot Board must hold a public hearing to adopt the language by majority vote.

When passed, the Citizens Not Politicians Amendment will establish an independent redistricting commission, free from current or former politicians and lobbyists. The initiative will create a fair, transparent, and impartial redistricting process that genuinely reflects the will of Ohio’s citizens.

In June, the group announced the support of nearly 100 organizations, businesses, and thought leaders across Ohio for the constitutional amendment. The diverse coalition supporting the historic initiative includes Republicans, Independents and Democrats and is made up of business groups, nonpartisan policy groups, labor unions, civil rights organizations, and faith-based organizations representing hundreds of thousands of Ohioans across the political spectrum.

A bipartisan group of more than 85 business leaders has also released an open letter endorsing the amendment.    

Gerrymandering, the practice of drawing political boundaries to favor a particular party or group, undermines fair representation and effective policy. Ohio is recognized as one of the worst states for gerrymandering, affecting the lives of millions of Ohioans.

The Citizens Not Politicians Amendment will:

• Create the 15-member Ohio Citizens Redistricting Commission composed of Republican, Democratic, and independent citizens representing the state’s diverse geography and demographics.
• Ban current or former politicians, political party officials, and lobbyists from serving on the commission.
• Require the creation of fair and impartial districts, prohibiting any drawing of voting districts that discriminate against or favor any political party or individual politician.
• Operate under an open and independent process.

For more information, visit www.citizensnotpoliticians.org.