Wherever you live in Ohio there’s a good chance the vast majority of local elected officials belong to one political party.
In rural Ohio, Republicans normally hold nearly all political jobs in local government and every seat in the Ohio Statehouse, with gerrymandering helping the party also keep a stranglehold on legislative seats. In our state’s major cities, the same is true for Democrats who control city halls and county governments and local Statehouse seats.
Despite our growing diversity, Americans continue to largely segregate themselves into red and blue counties and communities, leaving those on the other side of the local political spectrum without any meaningful voice or a real chance at winning an election.
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We’ve become a polarized state of localized one-party rule hindered by narrower debates with fewer ideas. Elected leaders don’t need to consider a wide range of alternative views to keep their jobs.