Leading up to Aug. 8, Ohio voters flocked to the polls in record numbers to vote in the special election to determine the outcome of Issue 1. The passage of Issue 1 would have raised the threshold to pass a constitutional amendment from 50 percent of the vote to 60 percent. According to NPR, the early voting turnout alone was over five times the total number of voters in last August’s legislative election.
President Joseph Biden and the White House released a statement following the conclusion of the August special election: “This measure was a blatant attempt to weaken voters’ voices and further erode the freedom of women to make their own health care decisions. Ohioans spoke loud and clear, and tonight democracy won,” Biden said. With a vote of 57 percent to 43 percent, recorded by The New York Times, Ohio voters struck down the proposed constitutional amendment.
