House Speaker William Batchelder, a Republican, told Ohio Public Radio’s Bill Cohen that he says hopes lawmakers can approve the change next week, in the final week of the 2011 legislative calendar.
“I presume they’re going to hold a hearing in State Government committee, which probably means I have to refer it right away. Then, I think it will proceed with some alacrity.”
“And is there agreement? Is there bipartisan agreement on it? Or, where are we at on that?”
“I don’t know about that at all.”
The Republican-led legislature voted in October to move the state's presidential and U.S. House primaries to June, while keeping the primaries for state lawmakers and the US Senate in March. The decision followed a spat over the new congressional district map – Democrats have until Christmas Day to gather signatures to put that map before voters. If they make next year’s ballot, then lawmakers will also likely have to come up with a new map.