Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (File)
The Ohio Redistricting Commission unanimously voted Friday to adopt a new congressional map heavily favoring Republicans, potentially handing the party two additional seats in the 2026 midterms.
The approved map favors the GOP in 12 of the state’s 15 congressional districts, joining a nationwide push encouraged by President Donald Trump for Republican-led states to strengthen their advantage in the House of Representatives through redistricting.
Ohio’s state constitution mandated a redraw because the 2021 map, which lacked bipartisan support, was only valid for four years. The new lines put several Democratic incumbents at risk. For insta…
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (File)
The Ohio Redistricting Commission unanimously voted Friday to adopt a new congressional map heavily favoring Republicans, potentially handing the party two additional seats in the 2026 midterms.
The approved map favors the GOP in 12 of the state’s 15 congressional districts, joining a nationwide push encouraged by President Donald Trump for Republican-led states to strengthen their advantage in the House of Representatives through redistricting.
Ohio’s state constitution mandated a redraw because the 2021 map, which lacked bipartisan support, was only valid for four years. The new lines put several Democratic incumbents at risk. For instance, Rep. Marcy Kaptur’s district, which Trump won by seven points in 2024, is set to shift further right.
“I would just say this darn well could be a 12-3 map. Those are pretty darn good numbers, and I think it lessens a chance there’ll be a referendum that our side might lose,” Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a member of the commission, commented.
By passing a bipartisan plan through the commission, which requires a unanimous vote, Republicans may insulate the map from legal challenges ahead of the 2026 election cycle, despite holding a supermajority in the state Legislature that could have pushed a more aggressive map.
The move comes amid a national redistricting battle, with Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina already approving new GOP-favorable maps expected to net the party up to seven additional seats combined. On the Democratic side, Virginia Democrats are seeking to gain up to three seats, while California voters will decide in November whether to move mapmaking authority to the Legislature, a potential shift that could add up to five Democratic seats.
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