Skip to content

Report: Ohio Map May Be Redrawn to Punish Jordan

Rep. Jim Jordan (R) might pay the ultimate price for undercutting Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) efforts to pass a debt ceiling bill, according to a report Thursday in the Columbus Dispatch.

The cost? His safe Republican House seat.

The newspaper cited anonymous sources “deeply involved in configuring new Ohio congressional districts” who said that Jordan’s defiance puts his seat on the chopping block in 2012.

Ohio will lose two House seats next year, and Republicans in the Legislature will have to pick two districts to eliminate. Lawmakers will likely remove one Democratic seat from around Cleveland and one Republican seat from another part of the state.

The newspaper’s sources suggested that Jordan’s actions make his district an easy choice for removal. They described a map that would make Jordan’s district much more competitive by moving his home county into the same district as heavily black parts of Columbus.

Boehner released a statement late Thursday afternoon knocking down the report.

“Jim Jordan and I may not always agree on strategy, but we are friends and allies, and the word retribution is not in my vocabulary,” the Speaker said. “I look forward to continuing to serve with him in the U.S. House after the redistricting process in Ohio is complete, and for many years to come.”

Jordan also released a statement after first posting the news story to his Facebook page, tweeting it and asking for feedback from supporters.

“We would hope that standing strong in favor of lower spending and balancing the federal budget would not be a reason to eliminate the district of a sitting member of Congress,” Jordan said in his statement.

Stay tuned.

Recent Stories

Trump immunity protesters see ‘make-or-break moment for our republic’

Supreme Court sounds conflicted over Trump criminal immunity

At the Races: Faith in politics

Nonprofits take a hit in House earmark rules

Micron gets combined $13.6 billion grant, loan for chip plants

EPA says its new strict power plant rules will pass legal tests