>> TONIGHT IS A MAJOR VICTORY FOR DEMOCRACY IN OHIO. THE MAJORITY STILL RULES IN OHIO. >> WE HAVE SOME BREAKING NEWS OUT OF OHIO TONIGHT, WHERE VOTERS WENT TO THE POLLS IN AN ELECTION WITH JUST ONE SINGLE ISSUE, A WHOLE LOT OF IMPLICATIONS. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS HAS NOW CALLED THE RACE THAT OHIO HAS REJECTED BALLOT ISSUE ONE WITH ABOUT 57% OF THE STATE VOTING NO. THAT NUMBER IS WITH ABOUT 52% OF PRECINCTS REPORTING, ACCORDING TO UNOFFICIAL RESULTS FROM THE OHIO SECRETARY OF STATE. BALLOT ISSUE ONE WAS A MEASURE TO RAISE THE THRESHOLD FOR CHANGING CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS. ESSENTIALLY, IT WOULD'VE MADE THOSE AMENDMENTS HARDER TO PASS. GERRYMANDERED STATES, ESPECIALLY BALLOT REFERENDUMS UNCONSTITUTIONAL EVENTS HAVE BECOME SOME OF THE ONLY WAYS THAT VOTERS CAN MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO BIG TICKET ISSUES LIKE REPRODUCTIVE CHOICE. NOT COINCIDENTALLY, THERE IS ONE SUCH A REFERENDUM ON THIS NOVEMBER'S BALLOT IN OHIO, WHEN THAT IF IT PASSES, COULD PROTECT ABORTION RIGHTS AND STANDS A VERY GOOD CHANCE OF PASSING, ESPECIALLY WITH THE RESULT WE HAVE TONIGHT. THAT'S WHY REPUBLICANS IN THE STATE TRIED TO MAKE IT HARDER TO GET THOSE SORTS OF REFERENDUMS PASSED. THERE HAVE BEEN RECORD BREAKING TURNOUT IN THIS AUGUST ELECTION, WHICH IS SOMEWHAT IRONIC BECAUSE EARLIER THIS YEAR, STATE REPUBLICANS VOTED TO ELIMINATE AUGUST ELECTIONS, CITING THE TRADITIONALLY LOW TURNOUT FOR THE ONES THIS TIME OF YEAR. THOSE VERY SAME REPUBLICANS CHANGE THEIR MINDS THIS SUMMER, BECAUSE PRESUMABLY, THAT TRADITIONALLY LOW TURNOUT WOULD'VE BENEFITED THEM ON THIS ISSUE SPECIFICALLY. HAVING SAID THAT, AS A LAST FRIDAY, 578,000 PEOPLE HAD ALREADY CAST THEIR BALLOTS, WHICH IS MORE THAN TWICE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO VOTED EARLY FOR THE 2020 PRIMARY. JOINING US NOW, KATIE PARISH, FOUNDER OF RED WINE AND BLUE, A GROUP OF SUBURBAN WOMEN WORKING TO COUNTER RIGHT-WING EXTREMISM WHO ALSO POSE FOR BALLOT ISSUE NUMBER ONE. THANKS FOR BEING HERE TONIGHT. CONGRATULATIONS ARE IN ORDER. THIS IS AN ISSUE YOU ARE FOUGHT HARD FOR. CAN YOU TALK TO ME ABOUT WHAT WOMEN WERE TELLING YOU ABOUT BALLOT ISSUE ONE, AND WHAT MOTIVATED THEM TO GO TO THE POLLS IN OHIO, A STATE THAT IS RED-ISH, IF NOT READ ENTIRELY. >> WOMEN WERE VERY CLEAR IN THEIR REJECTION OF EXTREMISM IN THIS ELECTION. THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT OUR DESIRE, THAT OUR DEMAND TO GET OUR REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS BACK, IT'S HUGE AS A MOTIVATING FORCE IN THIS ELECTION. VOTERS, SUBURBAN WOMEN ARE WHO WE REPRESENT, AND IT'S JUST INCREDIBLE TO SEE THESE ELECTION RESULTS TONIGHT. COUNTIES IN THE SUBURBS THAT WENT FOR REPUBLICANS IN THE U.S. SENATE AND GOVERNOR'S RACE IN 22 ARE VOTING OVERWHELMINGLY KNOW TONIGHT. WE ARE ALSO SEEING THAT IN OUR EXURBAN, MORE RURAL COUNTIES AS WELL. IT'S JUST INCREDIBLE. THESE COUNTIES, J.D. VANCE WON BY 60 OR 70%, THEY'RE VOTING BY NO. IN OUR OWN COUNTY, ONE OF OUR URBAN COUNTIES WHERE CLEVELAND 'S, BUT ALSO HAS TONS OF SUBURBS, IT'S WHERE WE HAVE TO GO BIG. IN 2020, TO THE TURNOUT WAS JUST NOT ENOUGH TO CARRY THE STATE. WE'RE SEEING A DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE HERE TONIGHT. THE TURNOUT IS BLOWING EVERYONE OUT OF THE WATER. EVERYONE IT HAS EXPECTATIONS, IT'S GOOD TO BE AN OHIO TONIGHT. THE RAMIFICATIONS ARE HUGE. NOT JUST REJECTION OF EXTREMISM IN OHIO, BUT REPUBLICANS HAVE GONE TOO FAR ACROSS THIS COUNTRY. IT'S NOT JUST TRUMP. THIS IS A BIG MESSAGE AGAINST EXTREMISM TONIGHT. >> ON THAT, NOW CERTAINLY ABORTION SEEMS TO BE A DRIVER THAT CONTINUES TO BRING DEMOCRATS, INDEPENDENTS, AND SOME REPUBLICANS OUT TO THE POLLS. THIS WAS BEYOND JUST THAT. THESE ARE SORT OF ANTI-DEMOCRATIC TACTICS BEING EMBRACED TO MAKE IT HARDER FOR VOTERS TO HAVE THEIR VOICES HEARD. I WONDER, YOU KNOW, HOW THAT FIT INTO THE PORTFOLIO OF REASONS WHY PEOPLE WERE GOING OUT. I WONDER IF YOU HEARD NOT JUST FROM WOMEN, BUT FROM INDEPENDENTS WHO UNDERSTOOD THIS TO BE WHAT IT IS, WHICH IS AGAIN, A WAY OF MUZZLING, IF NOT CENSORING THE VOICES OF OHIOANS WHO HAVE A TOUGH TIME GETTING LEGISLATION PASSED GIVEN THE GERRYMANDERED NATURE OF THE STATE. >> IT WAS A VERY BLATANT. THAT RED WINE AND BLUE, A THIRD OF OUR MEMBERS ARE FORMER REPUBLICANS AND INDEPENDENTS. IF REPUBLICANS KEEP TRYING THINGS LIKE THIS, THOSE NUMBERS ARE JUST GOING TO CONTINUE TO GROW. THESE ARE ABSOLUTELY NOT JUST DEMOCRATS ARE REJECTING EXTREMISM. IT WAS INDEPENDENTS, REPUBLICANS AS WELL. IT WAS SO TRANSPARENTLY A POWER GRAB, JUST GOING WAY, WAY TOO FAR. NOT ONLY THAT, I THINK THEY REALLY EXPECTED THAT HEY, WE'RE JUST GOING TO SNEAK THIS THROUGH. IT WILL BE A LOW TURNOUT ELECTION. NO ONE WILL NOTICE. AND THEY SAW THESE HUGE NUMBERS COMING OUT IN EARLY VOTING. SO THEY CRANKED UP THEIR DISINFORMATION MACHINE, IT'S BEEN A SHAME TO SEE WHAT WE HAVE SEEN ACROSS THE STATE IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS. THERE HAVE BEEN HUGE ATTEMPTS TO DRIVE FEAR INTO THE HEARTS OF VOTERS. EVEN MY, GROUP ME PERSONALLY, WE HAVE BEEN TARGETED. AS THESE TARGETS OF DISINFORMATION. WHAT WE HAVE SEEN HERE TONIGHT IS THAT THAT DOESN'T WORK. THE VOTERS SEE THROUGH THE DISINFORMATION. THERE HAVE BEEN BACKLASH TO THAT. I'VE HAD WOMEN ACROSS THE STATE TELLING ME THAT IT'S JUST MOTIVATED THEM, NOT JUST TO VOTE, BUT TO REACH OUT TO THEIR FRIENDS, AND TO THEIR FAMILY. MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY IS VOTING NO IN THIS ELECTION. IT'S ABOUT OUR DEMOCRACY. IT'S ABOUT OUR VALUES, IT'S ABOUT BEING ABLE TO HAVE A VOICE IN OUR STATE. THAT WENT WAY BEYOND ANY PARTISAN LINES. >> CAN I ASK, ARE YOU ASSUMING IF YOU'RE AS BULLISH ON THE PASSAGE OF THE BALLOT REFERENDUM IN NOVEMBER THAT WOULD ENSURE ON THE WOMEN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE INTO THE STATE CONSTITUTION? THE NUMBERS TRACK ALMOST EVENLY IN TERMS OF SUPPORT FOR THAT WITH OPPOSITION TO BALLOT ISSUE ONE. DO YOU THINK THAT THIS IS THE SAME SORT OF TURNOUT, THAT WILL BE THE CASE IN NOVEMBER? >> I'VE NEVER BEEN MORE EXCITED TO VOTE YES IN NOVEMBER. THAT IS WHAT I'M HEARING FROM VOTERS ACROSS THE STATE TONIGHT. RED WINE AND BLUE WAS PART OF THIS AMAZING COALITION ACROSS THE STATE, COLLECTING SIGNATURES. YOU MIGHT KNOW THAT WE HAVE COLLECTED 710,000 SIGNATURES TO PUT REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM ON THE BALLOT. THAT EFFORT STARTED IN MARCH. EVERY SINGLE VOTER THAT WE SPOKE TO, WE SAID OKAY, YOU ARE SIGNING TO PUT REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM ON THE BALLOT IN NOVEMBER. FIRST, YOU HAVE TO VOTE NO IN AUGUST. THEN YOU GET TO VOTE YES IN NOVEMBER. WE ARE JUST SO, SO EXCITED FOR THAT OPPORTUNITY TONIGHT. WE KNOW THAT EVERY POLL SHOWS, I DON'T TRUST EVERY POLL, BUT EVERY POLL FROM EVERYONE SHOWS THAT 57, 50, EIGHT 59% OF OHIO VOTERS WILL SUPPORT THIS REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS AMENDMENT. SOME OF THE NUMBERS ARE JUST INCREDIBLE. 85% OF INDEPENDENT WOMEN SUPPORT THE REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS BALLAD AN ISSUE LIVE. I'M VERY EXCITED. I'M PROUD TO BE IN OHIOAN TONIGHT. I DO EXPECT TO GET RESULTS IN NOVEMBER. >> CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR WORK TONIGHT. KA
