Abortion Fuels Ohio Race With Big Turnout: Ballots & Boundaries

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Pre-special election turnout is robust in Ohio, where voters are deciding whether it’s too easy to change the state’s constitution.

Tuesday’s outcome will determine whether a supermajority or simple majority of the electorate will decide in November about a proposed abortion rights constitutional amendment.

More than 533,000 early ballots had been cast as of Aug. 1, according to data compiled by the secretary of state’s office.

For comparison, nearly 639,000 people total voted in August of last year for legislative primaries. That election had historically low turnout, though.

Source: AdImpact
Image from an ad aired in Ohio by the group One Person One Vote

The dominant anti-change advertiser is emphasizing the connection between this ballot question and abortion, an issue that’s in flux because a judge blocked a law effectively banning the termination of pregnancies after six weeks’ gestation. — Eric Heisig

Nominees will be selected Tuesday to run for governor of Mississippi, a contest that’s been a little slow to take off since there’s an incumbent seeking re-election and no competition (therefore no drama) in the out-of-power party.

Gov. Tate Reeves is a Republican in a state that last elected a Democrat as governor in 1999. Polling shows that he’s not yet as much of a fan favorite as he may aspire to be (he’s the 47th most popular governor, per Morning Consult).

The Democratic Party’s nominee is going to be Brandon Presley, who’s in his fourth term as a state public service commissioner. (Yes, he’s from that Presley family; Elvis was a second cousin.) Three states are electing governors this fall. — Maura Kelly Lannan

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WISCONSIN: More To Come
A challenge to Wisconsin’s congressional map is on the drawing board, according to Ruth Greenwood, director of Harvard Law School’s election law clinic. “We are not shying away from filing suit against the federal maps,” she told a press conference. “Wisconsin is remaining at the forefront in the challenge against partisan gerrymandering across the country.”

Foes of the way Republicans handled redistricting for now are challenging only the state legislative maps. READ MORE from Alex Ebert.

NORTH CAROLINA: Breathing Room
Linedrawers working on new congressional districts in North Carolina have one less incumbent to protect now that Rep. Dan Bishop (R) is running for attorney general.

Look for them to maintain the Republican tilt of Bishop’s 8th District, which presently includes suburbs of Charlotte and Winston-Salem, though with less than the 66% Republican supermajority for Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Republicans will have a chance to enhance their footprint in the US House by shifting overabundant Republicans from Bishop’s current district into adjacent and more competitive districts now held by Democratic Reps. Jeff Jackson and Kathy Manning. — Greg Giroux

MICHIGAN: Attorneys Become Defendants
A lawyer who drove challenges to Michigan’s 2020 presidential election results is among the latest to face criminal charges in connection with a scheme to “test” voting machines in an effort to overturn Donald Trump’s presidential loss. Also indicted this week in connection to their post-election activities were a former GOP attorney general candidate and former state Representative. — Alex Ebert

ARIZONA: Never Mind
Arizona Republicans wanted to hand-count ballots. Then they saw the price tag and the errors. — NBC News

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To contact the reporters on this story: Eric Heisig in Ohio at eheisig@bloombergindustry.com; Maura Kelly Lannan in Washington, D.C.; Greg Giroux in Washington at ggiroux@bgov.com; Alex Ebert in Madison, Wisconsin at aebert@bloombergindustry.com

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Katherine Rizzo at krizzo@bgov.com; Bennett Roth at broth@bgov.com

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