COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - An Ohio competition challenging the public to create a new map of the state's legislative districts has been won - by an Illinois lawmaker.
Republican Illinois state Rep. Mike Fortner says he entered because redistricting is a hobby of his and Ohio's competition was the best he'd seen.
Illinois recently completed new maps, which are being challenged in court by groups charging that districts were illegally gerrymandered to benefit majority Democrats.
The Ohio contest was sponsored by a coalition that includes the League of Women Voters of Ohio and Ohio Citizen Action.
The coalition says Fortner's Ohio House map contains 25 politically competitive districts, compared with the current 10. It says his Senate map has as many districts favoring Democrats as Republicans, while 20 of 33 in the current map favor the GOP.