What you need to know about Ohio's August election to change how constitution is amended

The fight over whether it should be harder to change the Ohio Constitution is only just beginning.

Republican lawmakers have set an August election for a proposal that would require 60% of voters to enact constitutional amendments, instead of a simple majority of 50% plus one. Voters will get the final say over the proposed amendment at the polls on Aug. 8.

The Ohio House and Senate held final votes on the resolution Wednesday, months after GOP lawmakers and Secretary of State Frank LaRose first floated the idea. Proponents pushed for the August election to get ahead of a potential November ballot question to enshrine abortion access in Ohio.

The plan drew protests and outside spending as Republicans fought among themselves and faced pushback from Democrats. Now, election officials have three months to prepare for an unplanned election, and groups on both sides of the issue are gearing up for a heated, costly campaign.

"There'll be some organizations and individuals working to get this passed, and there'll be organizations and individuals working against it, and that's the democratic process," Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, said. "And I think that's what we wanted to see play out for the last six months."

Here's what happens now.

Abortion groups gear up for second fight

The group behind the abortion amendment is collecting voter signatures to place an issue on the ballot in November. They plan to stay focused on that effort, but they support a broader coalition that's working to defeat the 60% proposal.

The 60% threshold is critical because recent polls have indicated that more than half, but less than 60% of Ohioans support abortion rights.

Jeff Rusnak, a strategist for Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, believes the August election will energize Ohioans who want expanded access to abortion, including those who already signed petitions for the ballot question. He called the resolution a "desperate move" by Republicans to block the abortion initiative.

"They better be careful what they asked for here, because this is going to come back to bite them and bite them in a big way," Rusnak said.

Groups that oppose abortion also believe the debate over the constitution will motivate their base. Ohio Right to Life plans to work with other groups, including the business community and gun lobbyists, to push the 60% threshold.

"Everyone has their lane, and that’s what makes this unique," Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis said. "We all want the same thing in our coalition, but we want it for different reasons."

Conducting an August election

Election officials urged lawmakers to abandon plans for an August election, saying it would create additional headaches for poll workers. They supported the Legislature's decision last year to limit most special elections in August because of cost and low turnout.

Now, boards of elections have three months to make it happen. And they've already identified some potential problems.

Aaron Ockerman, executive director of the Ohio Association of Election Officials, said it can be difficult to recruit poll workers in August, so they've asked LaRose's office for help. They also need to ensure polling places will be available that day.

Another complication: Election officials must juggle the Aug. 8 election with candidate filings for November that are due around the same time.

"We're actively conversing with the secretary of state to really start to unpack what that looks like and put together a concrete plan for the next 90 days," Ockerman said.

Supporters, opponents likely to spend big

Groups for and against the 60% threshold are forming coalitions that will spend the summer trying to coax Ohioans to their side. And those campaigns require money.

Labor unions, voting rights groups and religious organizations who oppose the resolution have coalesced around a "Vote No in August" initiative. Advocates declined to say Wednesday if they have a specific fundraising goal, but they believe they'll have the resources and volunteers needed to prevail.

"They may have more money, but we've got people power on our side, and I have no doubt that we will do what it takes to win," said Scott DiMauro, president of the Ohio Education Association.

A group backed by Illinois billionaire Richard Uihlein aired ads ahead of Wednesday's vote urging Republicans to back the resolution. Now, Save Our Constitution PAC is shifting gears and will spend more money in the coming months to garner support from voters.

"Save Our Constitution commends Speaker Stephens and the vast majority of House Republicans for passing SJR 2," said Joel Riter, an advisor for the PAC. "Voters will be hearing from us soon on why this important reform will save our constitution from out-of-state special interest giveaways and activist meddling."

Legislature's decision could lead to lawsuit

Meanwhile, the decision to advance the resolution without an election bill raised legal questions that could culminate in a lawsuit.

Steven Steinglass, a professor and dean emeritus at Cleveland State University, said the state's new election law does not permit August elections for proposed amendments. To change that, he argued, the Legislature needed to pass the August election bill in addition to the resolution.

Steinglass cited a court opinion that determined state statute can't be changed or repealed through a joint resolution from the General Assembly. But GOP leaders disagree, pointing to another opinion that empowers lawmakers to set elections through resolutions.

Opponents of the resolution plan to weigh their options. Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima, said he expects to see a lawsuit that ends up before the Ohio Supreme Court.

"I would guess probably for the last 10 years, every election there was a lawsuit filed over something and some injunction," Huffman said. "Typically, the secretary of state will continue to move forward as though the election is going to happen. Certainly if the Supreme Court ultimately ruled that for some reason, some constitutional requirement wasn't followed, there wouldn't be an election, but that's not my expectation."

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