Thomas Votes to Protect Ohio's Constitution

COLUMBUS –State Representative Jim Thomas (R-Jackson Twp.) voted in favor of Senate Joint Resolution 2 (SJR2), the Ohio Constitutional Protection Amendment, which passed in the Ohio House earlier this week.

If passed by voters, the proposed amendment to Ohio’s Constitution would require any future constitutional amendment to be approved by at least 60% of the vote total, an increase from the current threshold of 50% plus one vote. 

“Simply put, voting in favor of SJR2 means we’ve put the power into the voter’s hands so they can decide how our Constitution should be amended,” Thomas said. “The proposal does not take away the ability of Ohioans to offer amendments. It does change the process for getting constitutional amendments on the ballot and ensures that all amendments have a wide range of support in order to be adopted.”

Additionally, SJR 2 does not impact other forms of direct democracy in Ohio’s Constitution. The rights to citizen-led initiatives to enact laws and referendums to challenge laws are unchanged and only require a simple majority vote.

SJR2 will go before voters on August 8, 2023.