Ohio Issue No. 5, Establishment of State Election Board Initiative (2005)

Ohio Issue No. 5
Election date November 8, 2005
Topic Election administration and governance
Status Defeated
Type Initiated constitutional amendment	Origin Citizens

Ohio Issue No. 5 was on the ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment in Ohio on November 8, 2005. It was defeated.

A "yes" vote supported establishing a board of nine appointed members to administer statewide elections and oversee the county boards of elections.

A "no" vote opposed establishing a board of nine appointed members to administer statewide elections and oversee the county boards of elections.

Election results

Ohio Issue No. 5
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		854,918	29.92%
No		2,001,983	70.08%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title for Issue No. 5 was as follows:

“

To create a newly appointed board to administer elections, this amendment would: Eliminate responsibility of the elected Ohio Secretary of State to oversee elections. Create an appointed board of nine members to administer statewide elections and oversee the existing county boards of elections. Provide that the members of the board are appointed as follows: four by the governor, four by the members of the general assembly affiliated with the political party that is not the same as that of the governor, and one by a unanimous vote of the chief justice and justices of the Ohio Supreme Court. The member appointed by the Supreme Court may not be affiliated with a political party. The governor and members of the general assembly must appoint equal numbers of men and women and take into consideration the geographic regions and racial diversity of the state. Members would serve staggered nine-year terms. Members may not hold any elective or other appointive public office, be a candidate for public office, hold a position with a political party, or be a registered lobbyist, and would be prohibited from making or soliciting political contributions and being involved in a candidate or ballot issue campaign. Require the state board of elections supervisors to hire an administrative director, to prescribe uniform procedures to be followed by the county boards of elections, to appoint and remove members of the county boards of elections in accordance with statutory provisions, to certify the petitions of candidates for statewide offices and petitions for statewide ballot issues, to certify all equipment and systems used for voting and counting of votes, to approve ballot language for all statewide issues, and to maintain a statewide voter registration file. Require the General Assembly to set a reasonable level of compensation for the members of the state board of elections supervisors and to appropriate sufficient funds for the board to be able to fully perform it duties and to compensate such staff and to acquire such equipment, supplies and office space as necessary for such performance. A majority yes vote is necessary for passage. Shall the proposed amendment be adopted?

”

Path to the ballot

See also: Signature requirements for ballot measures in Ohio

An initiated constitutional amendment is a citizen-initiated ballot measure that amends a state's constitution. Eighteen (18) states allow citizens to initiate constitutional amendments.

In Ohio, the number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is equal to 10% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. A simple majority vote is required for voter approval.

Ohio also requires initiative sponsors to submit 1,000 signatures with the initial petition application. Ohio has a signature distribution requirement, which requires that signatures be gathered from at least 44 of Ohio's 88 counties. Petitioners must gather signatures equal to a minimum of half the total required percentage of the gubernatorial vote in each of the 44 counties. Petitions are allowed to circulate for an indefinite period of time. Signatures are due 125 days prior to the general election that proponents want the initiative on.

See also

2005 Measures

• 2005 Measures
• Election administration and governance on the ballot
• 2005 legislative sessions

Ohio

• Ohio ballot measures
• Ohio ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Cleveland State University Law Library, "Ohio Constitution - Law and History: Table of Proposed Amendments," June 2, 2023