The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday ruled an Ohio state law mandating the political affiliation of members of the Ohio Elections Commission (OEC) is not unconstitutional. The law mandates the installation of three members from each of the two major political parties in the Ohio state legislature and one unaffiliated member. Members are suggested by state House and Senate leaders and appointed by the governor. The nomination system almost always results in three Democratic members and three Republican members.

The members of the Libertarian Party of Ohio (LPO) challenged the law, claiming that it made them “ineligible” for the OEC and violated their constitutional right to association. The District Court for the Southern District of Ohio granted summary judgment for the defendants, and the LPO appealed to the circuit court.

The circuit court evaluated the LPO’s claim based on the unconstitutional conditions doctrine, which prevents the government from “denying a benefit on the basis of a person’s constitutionally protected speech or associations.” Hiring discrimination based on party affiliation usually violates the doctrine.

However, the court examined precedent on the unconstitutional conditions doctrine and concluded that certain government jobs can hire based on party affiliation when “party affiliation is an appropriate requirement for the effective performance of the public office involved.” The court determined that positions on the OEC fit into the constitutional exception because they are “part of a group of positions filled by balancing out political party representation.”