Fowler Arthur Votes to Protect Ohio's Constitution

COLUMBUS –State Representative Sarah Fowler Arthur (R-Ashtabula) voted in favor of Senate Joint Resolution 2 (SJR 2), the Ohio Constitutional Protection Amendment, which passed in the Ohio House earlier this year.

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. 

“Voting in favor of SJR 2 allows Ohio voters to decide if the passage threshold for future Constitutional amendments should be greater than 50% plus one,” Fowler Arthur said. “The proposed 60% threshold ensures that all Constitutional amendments would have broad consensus among Ohio voters in order to be adopted while safeguarding the process from special interests writing themselves favors within our constitution.”

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.

SJR 2 will go before voters on August 8, 2023.