ASHLAND — According to Ashland Board of Elections Director Shannon Johnson, only a “small percentage” of Ashland County voters used documents like utility bills or bank statements to vote in the last election, a form of voter identification that is no longer valid under a law Gov. Mike DeWine signed in January.
Under the new law, only driver’s licenses, state-issued ID cards, military IDs, interim licenses, or passports can be used by voters to identify themselves when they go to cast their votes in-person.
The law also changes deadlines for requesting and mailing absentee ballots. Voters who want to vote by mail now have to request a ballot at least seven business days before the election instead of three days. And mail-in ballots have to arrive within four days of the election instead of ten days.
Like the new voter ID requirements, Johnson said she doubted the new mail-in requirements would significantly change voting in Ashland.
“I don’t know that it will necessarily change how the voters vote locally. All the voters in the state will just have to be more conscious about getting their ballots, requesting their ballots in a timely manner and returning them in a timely manner,” she said.
Early voting on the Monday before election day is also gone, with the hours normally dedicated for it moved to another day in the week before the election decided by the Secretary of State.
Staff at the Ashland BOE usually spent their Mondays before election day counting and verifying votes while also coordinating with poll workers to provide them with equipment and voter lists. Now that Monday voting is gone they will have more time to prepare, Johnson said.
“So (it’s) allowing us that extra day to ensure that we’ve got all of our bases covered and the correct and most up-to-date information available for the poll workers,” she said.
The new law also:
- Restricts curbside voting to only disabled voters
- Eliminates most August special elections
- Limits ballot drop boxes to one per county installed on Board of Elections property
- Allows all 17-year-olds to serve as election officials
- Prohibits the Secretary of State and county election boards from pre-paying return postage on ballots.
- Changes the time frame for voters to correct provisional ballots to four days after the election
- Changes the time frame for boards of election to decide to count provisional ballots to eight days after the election
Proponents of the law, like Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, argue it beefs up election security and improves election integrity.
“Ohioans are clearly supportive of strict photo ID for voting and we have found a common-sense way to make it happen that ensures voters are not disenfranchised,” said Secretary LaRose.
“No piece of legislation is a silver-bullet solution, but we are once again showing Ohioans that we take their concerns seriously and are dedicated to continuously improving our elections.”
Opponents of the law, like the Ohio Federation of Teachers, see it as an unconstitutional restriction on voting rights, and “a solution in search of a problem,” according to a joint lawsuit the organization filed against the restrictions in January.
“Members of the Legislature have pressed on in their efforts to restructure the state’s election system in ways that make it significantly harder for lawful voters — particularly young, elderly, and Black Ohioans, as well as military service members and other Ohioans living abroad — to exercise their fundamental right to participate in the state’s elections,” the suit reads.
The new law takes effect in April, just a few weeks before the May 2 primary. Because of its many legal challenges, Johnson and the Ashland Board of Elections are waiting until they receive guidance from the Secretary of State to make significant changes.
“I’m hoping that we get timely direction from the state,” she said.
