COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Arnold Schwarzenegger is a man of his word.

The Republican former governor of California had promised to toast Ohio's proposed congressional redistricting measure after it cleared the Ohio General Assembly last month.

Schwarzenegger, a longtime ally of Gov. John Kasich, said he was bringing a bottle of Austrian schnapps with him on his trip to Columbus for this weekend's Arnold Sports Festival.

And on Friday, he delivered on that promise.

Schwarzenegger offered shots of Obstler, an apple and pear brandy, for Kasich and legislative leaders in the State Room at the Ohio Statehouse after praising them for passing a bipartisan proposal to change how Ohio draws congressional district lines.

"Cheers, everybody, and I want to make sure the people of Ohio hear loud and clear it is important to vote for this..." Schwarzenegger said, raising his glass. "If you vote for this, you will have true redistricting reform and better performance from the legislators on the congressional side and also on the state level. We need your help, people, vote for it."

Ohioans will vote on the measure as Issue 1 on the May 8 ballot. The measure requires more minority party participation in the redistricting process and sets new criteria to limit how counties and municipalities can be split among districts.

Lawmakers worked quickly to approve a compromise proposal ahead of a citizens' effort to put a measure on the November ballot.

Members of the Fair Districts = Fair Elections coalition participated in negotiations for Issue 1. The coalition supports the measure, but will continue to collect signatures for November as a back up.

Fair Districts supporters, aware of Schwarzenegger's fondness for ending gerrymandering, will wear T-shirts featuring the actor's face and ask voters entering the Arnold Sports Festival to "terminate gerrymandering" in May.

We will be terminating #gerrymandering at the Arnold Sports Classic in Columbus this weekend! #YesonIssue1 pic.twitter.com/1rOMpcKDtR — Common Cause Ohio (@CommonCauseOhio) March 1, 2018

Schwarzenegger said California's redistricting reform, which was passed by a citizen initiative, has led to greater approval ratings for legislators. But he wished lawmakers there had come together on a proposal.