A close-up of a rainbow flag with a crowd in the background during the LGBT Pride parade. Getty Images.
Ohioans will not have the chance to vote in the November election to repeal the Ohio Constitution’s ban on same-sex marriage.
Equal rights in Ohio it was recently announced that they would not be trying two corrections in this year’s elections and will instead focus on the 2027 elections.
Another proposed amendment would add language to the state constitution protecting citizens from discrimination based on race, color, creed or religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression regardless of sex assigned at birth, pregnancy status, genetic information, medical condition, age, disability, recovery status, familial status, ancestry, national origin, or military or veteran status.
“We made a strategic decision in the face of voting attacks, high marketing costs and everything that’s going on this year – and to stay aligned with the Ohio Coalition to End Qualified Immunities and the Data Center Ban – that we would rather be on the same ballot and walk in step with people who share values and mission, and in an ecosystem that is a little less chaotic than what we see today,” said Lis Regula, executive co-chair Ohio Equality Commission.
To get on the November ballot, Ohio Equal Rights would need about 413,487 votes signatures from at least 44 of Ohio’s 88 counties by July 1 for each amendment.
Ohio Equal Rights does not say how many signatures it has collected so far, but those signatures have remained valid since then they did not present them to the Ohio Secretary of State.
The Ohio Constitution includes a ban on same-sex marriage after 61.7% of Ohio voters approved the amendment in 2004 this says that marriage is only between one man and one woman. The U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015 in the Obergefell case originating in Ohio.
However, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas urged justices to revisit Obergefell after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
LGBTQ bills
At the Ohio Statehouse Republican lawmakers in Ohio are introducing bills to pass anti-LGBTQ legislation, while there is virtually no movement on bills that would support LGBTQ Ohioans.
“It’s Pride Month right now, we have over half a million LGBTQ+ Ohioans, so this is very much the community we should be serving,” said Josh Meek, statewide advocacy manager for Equality Ohio.
The ACLU is out tracking 530 anti-LGBTQ bills across the country and 10 bills in Ohio.
Ohio Rep. Josh Williams, R-Sylvania Twp., has introduced many of Ohio’s anti-LGBTQ bills. He recently he lost in the Republican primary in Ohio’s 9th district Derek Merrin, so Williams won’t return to the Ohio Statehouse next year. The Ohio Capital Journal reached out to Williams for an interview, but he was unavailable.
Ohio House Bill 249 would prohibit drag performers from performing in any venue that is not a designated adult entertainment facility.
Bill passed the Ohio House in March, but has not yet held any hearings in the Ohio Senate. These types of laws have been blocked in other states for violating free speech.
“The language they use is so vague and legally broad that it could refer to theatrical performances that we would not consider obscene or harmful to minors,” Meek said.
Williams and state Rep. Angie King, R-Celina, introduced the bill.
Ohio House Bill 693 would prevent parents from being accused of abuse and neglect if they do not acknowledge their child’s transgender identity.
Williams and state Rep. Gary Click, R-Vickery, introduced the bill, which has so far been considered by the Ohio House Judiciary Committee.
Williams introduced these bills earlier this year, but no hearings have been held so far.
- Ohio House Bill 700 would prohibit the apply of state funds to provide minors with the opportunity to change their gender.
- Ohio House Bill 796 would make sure that Ohio’s prisoners and inmates are housed according to biological sex.
- Ohio House Bill 798 would restrict transgender Ohioans’ access to public bathrooms and prohibit changing gender markers on birth and death certificates.
- Ohio House Bill 838 would prohibit state and local governments from covering the cost of gender reassignment surgery.
Ohio House of Representatives Bill 172 would prohibit children 14 and older from receiving mental health services without parental consent. State Rep. Johnathan Newman, R-Troy, introduced this bill, which has had several hearings so far in the Ohio House of Representatives Health Committee.
Ohio House Bill 262 would define the weeks from Mother’s Day to Father’s Day as the Natural Family Month. Williams and state Rep. Beth Lear, R-Galena, introduced the bill, which has been considered four times so far.
“So many of our LGBTQ+ Ohioans, especially youth and youth in rural Ohio, don’t have anyone they know that’s in the community or may not see others like them, so I think passing this type of bill only reinforces the narrative that Ohio is not a very welcoming place for LGBTQ+ Ohioans right now,” Meek said.
Ohio House Bill 190 would require parental consent for schools to apply different pronouns or names for students that do not correspond to biological sex or birth name. Williams and Newman introduced a bill that had sponsor support last year.
Ohio House Bill 196 would require political candidates to include their previous names on their candidate petitions. However, this does not apply to names changed as a result of marriage.
King and state Rep. Rodney Creech of southwest Alexandria introduced the bill, which won support from sponsors last year.
Ohio Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio – the only openly gay lawmaker in the Ohio General Assembly – has introduced several bills that would lend a hand LGBTQ people, but none of the bills have been considered in the General Assembly so far.
- Ohio Senate Bill 70 would expand anti-discrimination laws to include sexual orientation and gender identity. House Bill 136 is a companion bill.
- Ohio Senate Bill 71 would prohibit licensed health care professionals from conducting conversion therapy while providing mental health treatment to minors. Antonio and state Sen. Beth Liston of Dublin introduced the bill. House Bill 300 is a companion bill.
- Ohio Senate Bill 211 would designate the first full week of June as “The Week of Love That Makes a Family.”
Antonio has introduced the Ohio Fairness Act in every General Assembly since she was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 2011, and for the first time since 2018, the bill does not have Republican support.
Any bill that is not passed by the end of the year must be re-introduced to the modern General Assembly for consideration.
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