Following the order of a federal court to hold an August 2nd primary using the third set of Statehouse maps approved by the Ohio Redistricting Commission, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose has issued guidance to county Board of Elections.

The order comes despite the Ohio Supreme Court decision that invalidated the maps, ruling them unconstitutional.

“The court’s order eliminates any lingering uncertainty and sets the remainder of the 2022 election year in motion," said LaRose. “My office and our partners at the 88 county boards of elections are already working this weekend to implement these directives. Despite the unprecedented delays and challenges we’ve faced this year, we remain committed to giving Ohioans the accessible election they expect and the confidence in the integrity of that election which they deserve.”

However, LaRose noted that adopting these maps is a temporary fix, and that a more permanent and constitutional solution would be necessary for 2024  election cycle.

The directive to the boards of educations includes the following:

• A statewide primary election will be conducted on August 2, 2022 for the offices of State Representative, State Senator, and Member of [Political Party] State Central Committee.
• The boards will use the district data files for the Third District Map adopted by the Ohio Redistricting Commission on February 24, 2022.
• All boards must program their voter registration and central tabulation systems with the Third District Map data by June 7, 2022.
• Boards must follow the revised elections calendar set forth in the directive for candidate petition recertification, protests, residency, withdrawals, independent candidacies, campaign finance deadlines, and other key requirements associated with conducting a statewide primary election on August 2, 2022.