The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1918-02-01
BIC FIGHT ON
FOR LEGISLATURE
viii Ohio Ratlty National Pro-
hibltlOn?
ACID TEST FOR CANDIDATES

How the Present Ohio Senate and
House Stands on the Wet and Dry
Question and How Counties and
Senatorial Districts Voted on State
Wide Prohibition Last November
Looks as If Drys Will Control Both
Branches of New General Assembly.
Now that Congress has put Nat
ional Prohibition up to the states, and
as the states ratify or reject the pro-
posed amendment to the Federal
Constitution through their legisla-
lures, and as Ohio will elect a new
General Assembly this year, an an
alysis of the Ohio situation at this
time is most interesting.
Regardless Of what some politi-
clans desire, the wet and dry question
will be the dominant issue in Ohio this
year In fact it will be the only big
issue. Everybody is for the vigorous
prosecution Of the war so that cannot
and will not be an issue. The fact
that Ohio will again vote on state
wide Prohibition and that the legis-
lature to be elected this year and
which will meet year from this time
will vote on the ratification of the
National Prohibition amendment, is
certain to bring the wet and dry ques-
tion prominently to the front.
What about the legislative situa-
tion? At the time the present legis-
lature was in session a year ago, the
country had not entered the war and
war Prohibition was not before that
body, and in fact no wet and dry ques-
tion of Importance was considered. It
was generally believed that while the
Senate was wet by a narrow margin,
the House was dry.
There are "a Senatorial Districts in
Ohio, and there are SO Senators in the
present body. Last November six of
these Senatorial districts with 13
members in the present Senate, re-
turned wet majorities, while 1S dis
tricts with 23 members gave dry ma
jorities. Under the Senatorial appor-
tionment, one of these wet districts,
the Cleveland district, will lose one
Senator in the next General Assembly,
while two of the dry districts-the
20-22nd and 24-26th-will lose one
each.
The Senate to be elected this year
will contain 33 instead Of Sc members.
If the Senatorial districts elect sena-
tors this year on the basis of the wet
and dry vote of last November, the
next Senate will have II wet men,
bers and "a dry members.
, There are 12S members of the pres
ent Ohio House. The House to be
elected this year will have 124 men,
bers. The counties of Belmont, Co.
lumbiana, Franklin and Hamilton will
each lose a member. Last November
on the statewide Prohibition vote, 76
of the IS counties voted dry and IL
voted wet The II counties which
voted wet will have 80 members in
the next House, and the 76 counties
which voted dry will have 85 MEM
bers.
Of the ~ counties which voted wet
last November, Cuyahoga' will have
i13 members in the next House; Ham
ilton, 8; Lucas, a; Montgomery, a;
Butler, 2; and Auglaize, Erie, Mer-
icer, Ottawa, Sandusky, Scioto, and
Shelby, one each.
Of the rs counties which voted dry
last November, Franklin will have A
members in the next House; Lorain,
2; Mahoning, 8; Stark, 8; Summit, 2,
and the remaining II will have one
each.
On the basis Of last November's
vote, there is no reason why the drys
of the state should not control both
branches of the next General As
sembly by wide margins. To see to it
this is done is now the duty to which
they must address themselves.
Cincinnati Daily Post and The Demo- |