JULIE CARR SMYTH

FILE - People gather in the parking lot of the Hamilton County Board of Elections as people arrive for early in-person voting in Cincinnati, Nov. 2, 2023. Ohio’s new constitutional projections for abortion access are supposed to take effect Dec. 7. But existing abortion-related lawsuits are moving again now that voters have decided the question, creating uncertainty about how and when the amendment will be implemented. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Ohio voters just passed abortion protections. When and how they take effect is before the courts

Ohio’s new constitutional protections for abortion access and other reproductive rights take effect Dec. 7, a month after voters resoundingly passed them.

Police respond to the scene of a shooting on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023 in Beavercreek, Ohio. Police say a shooter opened fire at a Walmart, wounding four people before apparently killing himself. The attack took place Monday night at a Walmart in Beavercreek, in the Dayton metropolitan area. (Marshall Gorby/Dayton Daily News via AP)

Shooting that wounded 4 in Ohio is the second to occur at a Walmart in 24 hours

Police say a gunman opened fire inside a Walmart in Ohio and wounded four people before killing himself, the second shooting in 24 hours at a store operated by the retail giant.

FILE - Members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission are shown a new set of proposed Statehouse maps during a meeting held, Sept. 20, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. The campaign behind a proposal to reform Ohio’s troubled political map-making system — finally cleared Monday, Nov. 20, 2023 to begin gathering signatures — said supporters will fan out across the state beginning this week to try to make next fall's statewide ballot. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth, file)

Signature-gathering starts anew for mapmaking proposal in Ohio that was stalled by a typo

Backers of a proposal to change Ohio’s troubled political mapmaking system can finally begin gathering signatures.

Ohio State Rep. Jennifer Gross, R-West Chester, holding a "Choose Life" sign, center, joined by Ohio State Rep. Adam Bird, R-New Richmond, left, and Ohio State Rep. Thomas Hall, R-Madison Township, right, stand together on stage during the Ohio March for Life rally at the Ohio State House in Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 6, 2023. The statewide battles over abortion rights that have erupted since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a constitutional right to the procedure have exposed another fault line: commitment to democracy. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Voters back abortion rights, but some opponents won’t relent. Is the commitment to democracy in question?

The statewide battles over abortion rights since the Supreme Court overturned a constitutional right to abortion have exposed another fault line across the country.

FILE - Then-Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner answers a question during a debate at the City Club of Cleveland, April 13, 2010, in Cleveland. On Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023, Brunner, now an Ohio Supreme Court justice, filed suit against two state officials over a recently passed law that requires certain judicial candidates to declare their party affiliation on ballots. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)

Supreme Court justice sues over Ohio law requiring certain judicial candidates to use party labels

A top jurist and former elections chief in Ohio has sued two state officials over a recently passed law that requires certain judicial candidates to declare their party affiliation on ballots.

Voters fill out ballots on Election Day at Chesapeake Elementary School on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023, in Chesapeake, Ohio. (Sholten Singer/The Herald-Dispatch via AP)

Ohio votes to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use, becoming 24th state to do so

Ohio voters have approved a proposal legalizing recreational marijuana. Republican legislative leaders are expected to weigh revisiting aspects of the proposal that passed Tuesday.

Supporters of Issue 1 cheer at a watch party, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023, in Columbus Ohio. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Ohio voters enshrine abortion access in constitution in latest statewide win for reproductive rights

Ohio voters have approved a constitutional amendment that guarantees the right to abortion and other forms of reproductive health care.

People gather in the parking lot of the Hamilton County Board of Elections as people arrive for early in-person voting, in Cincinnati, Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023. They urge people to vote for or against the measure known as Issue 1. Issue 1 is the only abortion question on any state ballot this year. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

An Ohio amendment serves as a testing ground for statewide abortion fights expected in 2024

A constitutional amendment to protect abortion rights in Ohio will be decided in what is expected to be a preview of abortion battles across the country in 2024.

FILE - Marchers move down Front Street during the Ohio March for Life after a rally at the Ohio State House in Columbus, Ohio, Friday, Oct. 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Misinformation is flowing ahead of Ohio abortion vote. Some is coming from a legislative website

Misinformation targeting a reproductive rights measure on Ohio’s fall ballot is appearing in an unusual place: the official website of the Republican-controlled state Senate.

FILE - Supporters of Issue 1, the Right to Reproductive Freedom amendment, attend a rally held by Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 8, 2023. As campaigning escalates in Ohio's fall fight over abortion rights, a new line of attack from opponents suggests "partial-birth" abortions would be revived if a proposed constitutional amendment passes. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana, File)

This procedure is banned in the US. Why is it a hot topic in fight over Ohio’s abortion amendment?

Anti-abortion groups seeking to build opposition to a reproductive rights measure in Ohio are messaging heavily around a term for an abortion procedure that hasn’t been legal in the U.S. for over 15 years.

FILE - Books sit on shelves in an elementary school library in suburban Atlanta, on Friday, Aug. 18, 2023. The battle over how to teach reading has landed in court. With momentum shifting in favor of research-backed strategies known as the “science of reading,” states and some school districts have been ditching once popular programs amid concerns that they aren’t effective. (AP Photo/Hakim Wright Sr., File)

Ohio embraced the ‘science of reading.’ Now a popular reading program is suing

The battle over how to teach reading has landed in court. With momentum shifting in favor of research-backed strategies known as the “science of reading,” states and some school districts have been ditching once popular programs amid concerns that they aren’t effective.

The Central Mound, the largest mound of the Mound City Group, is seen at Hopewell Culture National Historical Park in Chillicothe, Ohio, Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023, before the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks UNESCO World Heritage Inscription Commemoration ceremony. A network of ancient American Indian ceremonial and burial mounds in Ohio noted for their good condition, distinct style and cultural significance, including Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Ohio’s Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks mark UNESCO World Heritage designation

For 400 years, Indigenous North Americans flocked to a group of ceremonial sites in what is present-day Ohio to celebrate their culture and honor their dead.

Effort to replace Ohio’s political-mapmaking system with a citizen-led panel can gather signatures

Backers of a proposal to reform Ohio’s troubled political map-making system can begin collecting signatures for 2024.

Voters stand in partitioned booths to fill out their ballots during early in-person voting at the Hamilton County Board of Elections in Cincinnati, Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Voting begins in Ohio in the only election this fall to decide abortion rights

In-person voting for a November ballot measure over abortion rights is beginning in Ohio, the latest state where voters will decide the issue after the U.S.

FILE - Jenny Beth Martin, president and co-founder of the Tea Party Patriots speaks during a rally organized by Tea Party Patriots on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 9, 2015. Dysfunction within the Republican Party isn't limited to the leadership chaos in the House of Representatives playing out in the nation's capital. The hard-right forces that increasingly steer the direction of the GOP also have gained strength in numerous state legislatures, making it virtually impossible for the party to effectively governor even in states where it has the majority. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Internal conflicts and power struggles have become hallmarks of the modern GOP

Dysfunction within the Republican Party isn’t limited to the leadership chaos in the House of Representatives playing out in the nation’s capital.

FILE - Members of the Ohio Senate Government Oversight Committee hear testimony on a new map of state congressional districts, Nov. 16, 2021, at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio. Advocacy groups fighting Ohio's political maps in court formally objected Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023, to the latest round of Statehouse districts, which they see as unfairly drawn to favor Republicans. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth, File)

Another round of Ohio Statehouse maps has been challenged in court, despite bipartisan support

Advocacy groups who are challenging Ohio’s political maps have objected to the latest round of Statehouse districts.

FILE - J.R. Majewski, Republican candidate for U.S. Representative for Ohio's 9th Congressional District, speaks at a campaign rally in Youngstown, Ohio, Sept. 17, 2022. Majewski, a Trump-backed Republican whose military record was called into question during his unsuccessful 2022 congressional campaign, on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023, rejoined next year's race for a northern Ohio U.S. House seat. (AP Photo/Tom E. Puskar, File)

JR Majewski, who quit Ohio GOP primary in May, rejoins race to challenge Democratic Rep. Kaptur

A Republican backed by Donald Trump has rejoined next year’s race to take on Democratic U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur in northern Ohio. J.R.

Amendment aimed at reforming Ohio’s troubled political mapmaking system edges toward 2024 ballot

A proposed constitutional amendment that would remake Ohio’s troubled political mapmaking system has edged closer to the 2024 ballot.

Doris Peters calls voters during a phone bank event Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023, at the Republican Party of Cuyahoga County in Independence, Ohio. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Anti-abortion groups are at odds on strategies ahead of Ohio vote. It could be a preview for 2024

Abortion opponents in Ohio are at odds over how to frame their opposition to a reproductive rights amendment on the state’s November ballot and over longer-term goals on how severely they would restrict the procedure.

FILE - Protesters rally at the Ohio Statehouse in support of abortion rights after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, June 24, 2022, in Columbus, Ohio. Ohio Supreme Court justices vigorously questioned the state's lawyer Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2023, about a legal strategy that Ohio is attempting in hopes of resuming enforcement of a ban on abortion except in the earliest weeks of pregnancy. (Barbara J. Perenic/The Columbus Dispatch via AP, File)

Ohio wants to revive a strict abortion law. Justices are weighing the legal arguments

Ohio Supreme Court justices have questioned the state’s lawyer about a legal strategy that Ohio is attempting in hopes of reviving its law banning abortions except in the earliest weeks of pregnancy.

Members of the Ohio Redistricting Commission are shown a new set of proposed Statehouse maps during a meeting held Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, in Columbus, Ohio. The panel has reconvened to redraw Ohio's legislative boundaries after five earlier sets of maps were declared unconstitutionally gerrymandered. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth)

Ohio redistricting panel adopts GOP-drawn Statehouse maps for public discussion, as Democrats object

The Ohio Redistricting Commission has adopted new Republican-drawn Statehouse maps for public discussion. Several public meetings are expected over the next week.

FILE - A crowd cheers as Jim Caviezel speaks during a "rosary rally" on Aug. 6, 2023, in Norwood, Ohio. The Ohio Supreme Court says a portion of the description of a ballot question enshrining abortion rights in the state constitution is misleading. In a ruling late Tuesday, Sept. 19 the court ordered the state ballot board to rephrase wording that suggested the amendment headed to November ballots would limit citizens' ability to restrict abortions, when it would actually limit the government's ability. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)

Ahead of abortion vote, Ohio Supreme Court has ordered a rewrite of some misleading ballot language

The Ohio Supreme Court says a portion of the description of a ballot question enshrining abortion rights in the state constitution is misleading.

Cars drive along a road near one of the Twin Mounds, at right, at Fort Ancient Earthworks, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023, in Oregonia, Ohio. Fort Ancient is part of a network of ancient American Indian ceremonial and burial mounds around Ohio that were added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Network of ancient American Indian earthworks in Ohio named as UNESCO World Heritage sites

A network of ancient American Indian ceremonial and burial mounds in Ohio noted for their good condition, distinct style and cultural significance has been added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites.

In this 2022 photo provided by Joby Aviation is Joby’s pre-production prototype aircraft at the company’s flight test facility in Marina, Calif. The same Ohio river valley where the Wright brothers pioneered human flight will soon manufacture cutting-edge electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. An agreement announced Monday, Sept. 18, 2023, between the state and Joby Aviation Inc. will bring air taxi production to a 140-acre site at Dayton International Airport by 2025. (Eric Adams/Joby Aviation via AP)

Hundreds of flying taxis to be made in Ohio, home of the Wright brothers and astronaut legends

The same Ohio river valley where the Wright brothers pioneered human flight will soon manufacture cutting-edge electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft.

FILE - A map of Ohio congressional districts is displayed during a committee hearing at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, on Nov. 16, 2021. The Ohio Attorney General's Office has rejected petition language for a constitutional amendment aimed at remaking Ohio’s troubled political-mapmaking system. Republican Dave Yost said Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023, that the submission, by the group Citizens Not Politicians, failed to present a fair and truthful summary of what is proposed. (AP Photo/Julie Carr Smyth, File)

Ohio attorney general rejects language for political mapmaking reform amendment for a second time

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office has once again rejected petition language for a constitutional amendment aimed at remaking Ohio’s troubled system for drawing political maps.

GOP legislative leaders’ co-chair flap has brought the Ohio Redistricting Commission to a standstill

Ohio’s latest attempt to draw fair political maps has crumbled amid Republican infighting. Gov. Mike DeWine gaveled the reconstituted Ohio Redistricting Commission to order despite the Ohio Senate president and Ohio House speaker, both fellow Republicans, being at an impasse over who the GOP’s co-ch

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh speaks at a judicial conference, Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Supreme Court Justice Kavanaugh predicts ‘concrete steps soon’ to address ethics concerns

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh has told attendees at a judicial conference in Ohio that addressing recent ethics concerns can increase public confidence in the institution.

Voting rights groups ask to dismiss lawsuit challenging gerrymandered Ohio congressional map

Ohio voting-rights groups want to dismiss their lawsuit against Ohio’s unconstitutional congressional map.

A sign outside of the Wayne National Forest headquarters is posted in Nelsonville, Ohio on Tuesday, August 29, 2023. A vigorous debate is under way over a U.S. Forest Service proposal to rename the 250,000-acre Wayne National Forest after Ohio's state tree, the buckeye. (AP Photo/Patrick Orsagos)

Founding father Gen. Anthony Wayne’s legacy is getting a second look at Ohio’s Wayne National Forest

A vigorous debate is under way over a U.S. Forest Service proposal to rename the 390 square-mile Wayne National Forest after Ohio’s state tree, the buckeye.

FILE - Attendees pray during a "rosary rally" on Sunday, Aug. 6, 2023, in Norwood, Ohio. As the campaigning for and against the nation’s latest tug-of-war over abortion begins in earnest this weekend, Ohio voters are getting a different message from the measure’s opponents. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)

An Ohio ballot measure seeks to protect abortion access. Opponents’ messaging is on parental rights

The wording of a proposed constitutional amendment on Ohio’s fall ballot to ensure abortion rights seems straightforward.