A bill to end child marriage in Ohio had the support of both Democrats and Republicans. It faced zero opposition across four public hearings. And then, without explanation, a small group of lawmakers killed it behind closed doors.

Senate Bill 341 would do one straightforward thing: raise the minimum marriage age in Ohio to 18. Right now, state law still allows 17-year-olds to marry under certain conditions — a loophole that child welfare advocates say puts young people at serious risk of domestic abuse, financial dependence, and exploitation.

The bill was co-sponsored by Sen. Bill DeMora (D-Columbus) and Sen. Bill Blessing (R-Colerain Township) — a rare show of bipartisan cooperation on a common-sense child protection measure. Not one person testified against it in any of its four hearings.

Then, after a closed-door Republican caucus meeting last week, the bill was quietly pulled from the Senate Judiciary Committee's voting agenda. No senator has publicly explained who blocked it or why.

According to Unchained At Last, a national organization working to end forced and child marriage, 5,062 minors were married in Ohio between 2000 and 2024 — including 53 marriages under the updated 2019 law. "It is shameful. It is a slap in the face to girls in Ohio," said Fraidy Reiss, founder of Unchained At Last.

This is not a partisan issue. This is a child protection issue. We are calling on Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Nathan Manning, Senate President Rob McColley, and all Ohio Senate Republican caucus members to bring Senate Bill 341 back to a vote — and pass it — before this legislative session ends. Ohio's children cannot wait.