Issue 9: Columbus charter amendment (by Council) — district-only voting and at-large seats

The question, as printed on the ballot

This proposed charter amendment would limit the ability to vote for candidates for Columbus City Council to only those electors living within the districts that those candidates seek to represent. The amendment adds two (2) at-large council representatives to be elected in 2027 and seated in 2028, and an additional two (2) at-large council representatives to be elected in 2029 and seated in 2030. All at-large council representatives will be elected for four (4) year terms. The amendment includes provisions for transitioning from the current nine (9) member Council to an eleven (11) member Council and then subsequently to a thirteen (13) member Council, allowing for the ongoing staggering of terms. The amendment allows councilmembers representing districts whose boundaries are redrawn but who still have at least two years remaining in their term to serve the remainder of their term representing a newly-drawn district. The amendment specifies that candidates for council district seats must have resided within their district for at least one year prior to the primary election. The amendment calls for a redraw of the current council district map to occur in 2027, and increases the maximum population variance between districts from 1% to 7.5%. The amendment updates the vote requirements for expelling and/or removing councilmembers for misconduct, malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance. The amendment updates the expulsion vote threshold for conduct from “six” to “2/3rds,” and the expulsion vote for absences from “three-fifths” to “2/3rds.” The amendment updates the charter to reflect the minimum number of councilmembers necessary to achieve a quorum for the purposes of meeting for business. The amendment increases the number of affirmative votes that would be needed to adopt ordinances or resolutions in concert with expanding the size of the legislature. The amendment specifies that candidates for district councilmember must collect at least 150 signatures of electors from within their district, and that at-large candidates must collect at least 250 signatures of electors from within the city limits. The amendment specifies that ballots within council districts will include both citywide races as well as the district race. The amendment allows for the initiation of a recall election of a council district representative if a petition is submitted bearing the signatures of the electors of that district in an amount equal to or greater than fifteen (15%) percent of the votes cast within the district in the preceding mayoral election. The amendment allows for the initiation of a recall election of an at-large representative if a petition is submitted bearing the signatures of the electors citywide in an amount equal to or greater than fifteen (15%) percent of the votes cast within the district in the preceding mayoral election. Shall the proposed charter amendment be approved?