Overview

• Ohio Equal Rights announced on August 12 that it will advance separate anti-discrimination and marriage repeal initiatives for the 2026 ballot following the July split by the Ohio Ballot Board.
• Each amendment must gather about 442,958 valid signatures from registered voters in at least 44 counties and submit them no later than 65 days before the November 2026 election to qualify.
• Backers say pursuing both drives avoids a protracted legal challenge despite doubling fundraising, petitioning and administrative costs.
• Organizers pointed to recent state measures restricting transgender rights and a pending Supreme Court petition to revisit Obergefell v. Hodges as central motivations for solidifying constitutional protections.
• If approved by voters, the amendments would enshrine broad anti-discrimination rights and formally repeal the dormant 2004 same-sex marriage ban, following the precedent of Ohio’s 2023 constitutional amendments on abortion and marijuana.