COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Thousands of Ohioans have already made their voices heard at the ballot box during early voting, including votes on Issue 1.  Brought forward by a group called Citizens Not Politicians, the ballot initiative wants to create an independent redistricting commission of 15 Ohio citizens, rather than the current commission made up of seven politicians, which was adopted by voters in 2015.  Ohio voters don’t back Trump’s false claims about Haitian immigrants, poll says A “yes” vote for Issue 1 will give the power of the pen to citizens; a “no” vote means to keep the redistricting system the way it is.  Four members of the current redistricting commission, which was enacted by more than 70% of voters in 2015, are Ohio House or Senate members who rely on district maps.  Those on both sides of the redistricting issue said a vote in either direction will stop gerrymandering.  “It's just, it's bureaucratic,” Ohio Speaker of the House Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) said. “There is little, there's no accountability. Nobody is elected. I hope people, you know, are able to look into the details and understand what it really means for Ohio and will vote ‘no.’”  “This citizen-led commission is open and transparent,” Ohio House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) said. “Citizens actually have an active role in providing input about their communities and what they value. That is unlike what we have seen in the [current] redistricting process, where that input has been ignored completely.”  Stephens said he thinks this amendment put the process at a disadvantage.  West Columbus bar, site of double murder, ordered to shutter doors by 2025 “To try to paint folks in that they are going to vote for a certain party forever, that is what Issue 1 does,” he said. “And I just don't think the world works that way.”  “That's false, that's a false assertion,” Russo said. “Proportionality is a consideration, but so is keeping communities of interest together.”  Backers of Issue 1, like Russo, said allowing elected officials to pick their voters is exactly what the current commission does, not what Issue 1 would do.  “This process that Issue 1 would create is far more transparent, far more open, has far more guidelines about what should be followed and how it can be followed than the current process,” Russo said. “And provides accountability for following through and making sure that that process is open and transparent to the public.”  “No, I wouldn't necessarily agree with that. It is very, very restrictive,” Stephens said. “Things change, parties change, the politics change, and to base the lines on political preference alone as the number one thing I think is a real disservice to the people of Ohio and the communities of Ohio.”  Tracking the next chance to view northern lights in Ohio But Stephens said even the process of choosing the commission is complicated under Issue 1. He called it “convoluted” and said the current system works fine, and if anything, just needs some changes around the edges to “address some of the concerns.”  “It would be much better to have those kinds of discussions than to have well ‘let's just throw the baby out with the bathwater’ kind of thing, which I think is what is what Issue 1 does,” Stephens said.  “It's no surprise and should not be shocking that the same people who are advocating for a ‘no’ are the same people who refuse to give up power during the last round of redistricting and ignored the rule of law, ignored multiple Supreme Court orders,” Russo said. “Because they don't want to relinquish power. So, they are urging you to vote ‘no’ because they want to hold on to their power.”  Russo said the lawmakers backing a vote ‘no,’ want to ensure that they have the power to retain their jobs through drawing maps.  “They want to completely control the process so they can draw the lines for themselves and their cronies and not give that power to the citizens,” she said. “For the citizens to actually say, ‘this is who we want in elected office, and this is how we want our communities to be represented.’”  But Stephens said pass or fail, Issue 1 likely will not be the end of this discussion.  “It's not out of the question that there would be another kind of amendment that gets proposed, and you might see it again. You know, it's hard to predict the future of these kind of things,” Stephens said.