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Jun 16 2020

Ohio Democratic Leaders Condemn Republican Voter Suppression Bill, Call on LaRose to Take More Proactive Action

Columbus, OH – Today, leading Ohio Democratic elected officials held a press call to condemn Ohio Republicans for failing to secure safe and accessible elections this fall and calling on Secretary LaRose to take specific actions. 

A recording of the call is available here. (Password: 6t&W626p)

New data shows over 1.5% of all votes (over 30,000 absentee and provisional ballots) cast in the spring primary were thrown out. Those tend to be disproportionately young people, seniors, Black people, and poor people who lack access to transportation and technology.

“We’re going to have a closely-watched, high-turnout, tight-margin election this fall, and that does not give me confidence that Ohioans are going to be able to have faith in the outcome,” said Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin, identifying this as a civil rights issue. “Over the last two weeks, as White and Black Ohioans have been marching together outside on the Statehouse lawn for justice, the Republican majority was inside giving a masterclass in systemic racism.” He asked Republicans to “take their knee off the necks” of Ohioans and let them vote.

They called on the Secretary of State to maximize existing authority to ensure access in the November election. “We’re happy that the Secretary of State announced last night that he plans to use funding from the Controlling Board to send absentee ballot request forms to registered voters. We’re happy that he plans to continue something that has happened in Ohio ever since 2012. It is literally the least he could do,” said Hamilton County Clerk of Courts Aftab Pureval. 

They called on LaRose to: 

  1. Put pre-paid postage on those ballot request forms using funding from the Controlling Board, failure of which constitutes a poll tax and which the Secretary of State has said himself in past letters to the legislature is likely unconstitutional.
  2. Create an online absentee ballot request form instead of making people use printers, ink, and stamps to make their request. This power is within his existing authority under ORC 3509. As Secretary of State, Jon Husted similarly used his own authority to create online voter registration updates. 
  3. Implement automatic voter registration administratively, which he has said he supports in the past. This would counteract the likely fall-off in voter drives and motor vehicle registrations not occurring during the pandemic.

Columbus City Council President Pro Tem Elizabeth Brown introduced a resolution yesterday to declare that the City of Columbus condemns these voter suppression efforts, noting Franklin County, the largest county in Ohio, accounts for about 11% of the state’s population but about 15% of all the absentee and provisional ballots thrown out. She shared several ideas for how cities and counties can remedy the problems the state has failed to solve.  “None of this is an accident,” she said. “We know what this is. It is a recipe for long lines and voter disenfranchisement..If the state is not willing to lead on this matter, then local governments are going to have to step into the breach.” 

State Representative Brigid Kelly condemned House Bill 680 that passed out of the committee on which she is the ranking member. It received no proponent testimony until the Secretary of State suddenly decided to support it even though it does not align with the stated proposals he spent weeks disseminating. “Now the Secretary says he is supporting a bill that does not align with his own priorities. This means the Republicans in the legislature or the Secretary of State are not working for the interests of Ohioans, an overwhelming majority of whom want to make it easier to vote early and by mail.” 

This follows a May 11 press call when these Democrats came together with 20+ elected colleagues across the state to release a letter outlining policies to ensure a safe, accessible, and secure general election. “Unfortunately, it seems we were correct that Republican leaders in Ohio had no interest in ensuring every Ohioan is able to vote this fall,” said Portage County Commissioner Kathleen Clyde. “And unlike with the botched spring primary, there is no possibility of a re-do for the November election. This pandemic is far from over.”

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Written by Michael McGovern · Categorized: 2020 Election, Democracy · Tagged: absentee voting, aftab pureval, Brigid Kelly, democrat, democrats, Early Voting, election day, Election Protection, Elections, elizabeth brown, Frank LaRose, Kathleen Clyde, ohio voting, Republicans, secretary of state, shannon hardin, vote by mail, Voter Suppression, Voting, Voting Rights

Sep 19 2013

Multiple election reform bills on legislative agenda this fall

Since August, five bills have been introduced in the General Assembly regarding voting procedures. With legislators set to return from their summer break in the coming weeks, here is some basic information about each bill: House Bill 240: Introduced by Representatives Adams and Becker, HB 240 eliminates the option of holding special elections in February and August. Special elections tend to feature local questions like tax levies. House Bill 250: Introduced by Representative Becker, HB 250 reduces the days for early voting. The first day for early voting would move from 35 days to 17 days prior to an election. House Bill 263: Introduced by Representative Becker, HB 263 limits and standardizes the times for early in-person voting throughout the state of Ohio. With HB 263, early voting sites would only be open Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 4:30pm. House Bill 266: Introduced by Representative Becker, HB 266 prohibits the mailing of unsolicited election forms and the prepayment of postage for the return of election forms. The bill also clarifies that a board of elections should be the entity responsible for sending and receiving absent voter’s ballot materials. Senate Bill 175: Introduced by Senator LaRose, SB 175 revises the law concerning voter registration and requests for absentee ballots. Among the changes in SB 175 are online voter registration and information sharing between state agencies in order to maintain the statewide voter registration database. Another bill that is under consideration this fall is House Bill 75, introduced by Representative Stinziano in early February. HB 75 establishes an online voter registration system and would also implement a statewide voter registration database-information sharing system.  

Written by bpeyton · Categorized: Innovation Station · Tagged: Early Voting, Election Reform, Elections, Voting

Sep 13 2012

Ohio’s Early Voting Timeline – Access Moving in the Wrong Direction Under Husted

Ohio voters have won a key victory in the battle to restore certain early voting opportunities in Ohio. On Wednesday, a federal judge denied Secretary of State Jon Husted’s request for a stay of the Judge’s order to allow counties to set voting times for the final three days before the election. This paves the way for counties to open up the door on Saturday through Monday, November 3-5. In-person voting on the final weekend of the election has proven a very popular option for Ohio voters. In fact, according to Northeast Ohio Voter Advocates, in 2008, 102,243 Ohioans voted in-person on the final three days before the election. Yesterday’s announcement is a significant step in the right direction. [Read more…]

Written by bpeyton · Categorized: Fair and Open Elections, Innovation Station · Tagged: 2012, Early Voting, Jon Husted, Ohio, Voter Suppression

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