Ohio high court orders new look at voter rights proposal

The Ohio Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost to review a proposed ballot measure again after he previously rejected it. Yost refused to let the measure appear on the ballots because he did not believe its title was a fair and accurate description of the measure. The state’s supreme court said he did not have the authority to review the measure’s title, but only a summary of the measure that would appear before voters on Nov. 5. It ordered him to review the summary, and if it was accurate, pass it on to the Ohio Ballot Board.

What’s this proposed ballot measure about? The measure proposes amending the Ohio Constitution’s provisions regarding who is an eligible voter, how those eligible voters can cast their ballots, and how the state can manage elections. If passed, the measure would establish the constitutional right of any citizen to vote early, to obtain a ballot by which they can vote from overseas, and to register to vote on the same day as an election.

The measure spells out what qualifies as an acceptable voter identification card where election officials require voter identification, but it also makes provision for voters without those cards on-hand. According to the measure, they can still obtain a ballot by submitting a statement of their identity sworn under penalty of perjury that includes their date of birth, as well as a signature that can be compared by a signature already on file. The measure also explicitly grants the state the authority to update the technology authorities use in conducting elections. Additionally, it would eliminate an existing constitutional provision requiring citizens who have abstained from voting in an election for four consecutive years to re-register to vote before they can cast a ballot again.

Dig deeper: Read Carolina Lumetta and Leo Briceno’s report in The Stew providing an encyclopedia of election integrity.