E.T.'s finger, LeBron James, and 'confusion:' Why Ohio's new congressional maps are causing headaches

Ohio Republicans unveiled two congressional maps that Democrats immediately panned as unconstitutional gerrymanders. 

Even Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, said there's some work to do on maps that could give the GOP as much as a 13-2 advantage in a state that voted for then-President Donald Trump with 53% of the vote in 2020. 

"It’s pretty clear neither one of these maps are going to fly," said DeWine, calling them a starting point. 

As Ohio lawmakers hammer out the final version of the state's 15 congressional districts, here's a look at some key points of conflict. 

What is competitive?

One goal of the voter-approved changes in 2018 was to give Ohioans more competitive maps. But what does that mean and are proposed maps hitting the mark?

Popular redistricting website, Dave's Redistricting App, measures competitiveness as any district with a partisan index of between 45% and 55%. 

Under that measure, the Senate Republican map offers seven competitive districts – more than the House GOP map with four or Senate Democratic proposal with six. The Senate GOP's map has the highest score for competitiveness of the three introduced maps. 

By that measure, the current 15th District is considered competitive. Still, GOP candidate Mike Carey won 58.3% of the vote Tuesday over Democrat Allison Russo in a race that the Cook Political Report rates as 9 percentage points more Republican than the country as a whole. 

By that measure, the Senate GOP's 4th District, which stretches from GOP Rep. Jim Jordan's Champaign County to Columbus' heavily Democratic neighborhoods of Linden and Clintonville, would be competitive. But opponents of the map say that district simply dilutes Democratic votes in Franklin and Delaware counties. 

Each map has at least one district that would be within 3 percentage points – a virtual tossup. In the House GOP's map, it's the 1st District, which includes the city of Cincinnati and Warren County. The Senate Democrats' plan would create a highly competitive district in Cuyahoga County.

The Senate Republicans' plan would have two: the 13th District, which would include Lorain, Medina and portions of Cuyahoga County, and the 15th District, which would stretch from Columbus and western Franklin County to the Ohio River in southern Ohio.

Is Rep. Marcy Kaptur doomed?

Both GOP maps would draw Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, into a Republican district, slaying the "snake on the lake" 11th District that stretches from Toledo to Cleveland. 

Both Republican proposals would put Kaptur's Toledo home in a district that stretches into several rural counties in north-central Ohio. The House map divides Toledo into two GOP districts while the Senate plan leaves it whole. 

Kaptur, in a statement, called the proposed maps "a clear violation" of fair congressional districts. 

“A legitimate redistricting of Ohio could have easily achieved a balanced result without elongated, far-reaching boundaries that break apart metropolitan areas, split Ohio's communities of affinity, defy natural topography and shatter economic regions," Kaptur said.

The Senate Democrats' plan would keep Lucas County with Ottawa, Sandusky and Erie counties in a district that Democrats could easily win. What Democrats can't do is revive the snake – that district would be forbidden under the new voter-approved changes. 

“Keeping our largest cities and counties together is a priority," said House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes, D-Akron. "It is reasonable for us to be suspicious as to why there are splits and cracking of our largest urban counties."

Sykes said at this point, Democrats won't support these maps.

“There’s still time to turn it around. There’s still time to ensure we get a bipartisan map.”

Conneaut or Hocking Hills: an Akron problem

Akron and Summit County are used to being sliced and diced. Under the current map, Summit County is divided into four congressional districts and none of its U.S. representatives live in the county. 

Under the House Republicans' map, Summit County is divided three times. Combined, those districts stretch from Conneaut in the state's far northeast corner to Hocking Hills, hundreds of miles south.

David Niven, a political science professor at the University of Cincinnati, said Conneaut and Hocking Hills have little in common with Akron. Those testifying about the maps Thursday agreed. 

"Akron is a Rust Belt city with a rich history of industry, home of tires and rubber and LeBron James," said Carrie Coisman with All on the Line Ohio, an advocacy organization affiliated with the National Democratic Redistricting Committee. Those voters shouldn't be included with voters in southeastern Ohio, she added.

Niven said Summit County's divides aren't practical; they're political.  

"This is the price that the Republicans are imposing on folks because they don't vote in a Republican enough manner," Niven said. 

The Senate GOP map splits Summit County twice, creating two districts where Republicans would be favored.

Hamilton County and E.T.'s finger

When voter-approved changes to the Ohio Constitution required Cincinnati to be kept in one district, Democrats wondered whether they would have a shot at a blue district there.

But both GOP proposals dashed those hopes. The House plan would keep Cincinnati with Warren County, a GOP stronghold.

"In northeast Hamilton County, there's almost an E.T. finger reaching from one side to the other that brings three congressional districts together in Hamilton County," said Niven, adding that illogical districts can make it difficult for Ohioans to know their representative. "What you get out of that is confusion. What you get is diminished representation." 

The Senate plan would take the city's district east to Portsmouth's Scioto County. Both maps would divide Hamilton County into three congressional districts – something that's not required based on population and isn't the case under the current map. 

Both plans would draw Republican Reps. Steve Chabot, of Westwood, and Brad Wenstrup, of Columbia Tusculum, into the same congressional district. Wenstrup also owns property in Highland County, which could solve the problem under the House proposal but not under the Senate's. 

Members of Congress do not need to live in the district they represent, but they almost always do. 

Redistricted

Each map sets up potential matches between current members of Congress or candidates likely to win the seat. 

In Columbus, Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty's downtown condominium was drawn into a district with Jordan under the Senate proposal and into a district with newly elected Rep. Mike Carey under the House proposal. Carey and Beatty live about a mile apart. 

The House Republicans' map would create a problem for Max Miller, former President Donald Trump's pick to replace Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, a Rocky River Republican who announced he wouldn't run for reelection.

The House GOP map draws Miller into the same district as Democrat Shontel Brown, who just won the 11th Congressional District in Cleveland. Without a revision, Brown would almost certainly defeat Miller in the heavily proposed Democratic district. 

And Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Niles, made the choice to run for U.S. Senate at the right time. Under both GOP plans, his district would be much more favorable to Republicans, but that's been the trend in the Mahoning Valley since Trump won the state twice.

What's next?

Lawmakers will get input on their proposed maps in committee hearings next week. The exact times and dates have not yet been released. 

The Ohio Constitution also requires that a joint committee of the House and Senate to hold at least two public committee hearings on a proposed plan before it passes. 

The map must receive support from 60% of lawmakers and 33% of Democrats to last 10 years. If the GOP can't cobble together enough bipartisan support, Republicans could approve a map that lasts four years instead. That map must meet certain constitutional criteria, such as not unduly favoring one party over the other. 

DeWine will have an opportunity to either sign or veto the final plan. The map would be subject to a referendum from voters or a legal challenge in the Ohio Supreme Court. 

USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau reporter Haley BeMiller and Akron Beacon Journal reporter Doug Livingston contributed to this article. 

Jessie Balmert is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Akron Beacon Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.