Democrats Slam Ohio Secretary of State Over New Directive Restricting Ballot Drop-Offs
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) issued new guidance this weekend that limits the use of drop boxes in the state. Democrats say the directive will make it harder for vulnerable populations to vote.
Under LaRose’s guidance, people who are returning ballots for an elderly family member or a person with a disability must do so directly with the Board of Elections, and must sign an affidavit to that effect.
There are 10 active voting and election lawsuits in courts across Ohio.
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The aim of the directive, according to LaRose, is to enforce Ohio’s ban on “ballot harvesting … a process by which an individual attempts to collect and return absent voters’ ballots of other persons without accountability.”
“It is important to ensure the integrity of each vote delivered on behalf of an absent voter,” the directive, issued Saturday to county election boards, stated. “The security of the delivery of absentee ballots remains paramount, especially as it applies to the use of unattended drop box receptacles.”
But Democrats in Hamilton County, which includes Cincinnati, said the directive will make it harder for people to help elderly family members and other vulnerable voters return ballots. “This directive will disproportionately harm our seniors, people with disabilities, and our working families,” the party said in a statement.
“The law says we’re allowed to help our families return ballots. This restriction proposed by Secretary LaRose contradicts that law. This is voter intimidation and it’s just plain wrong.”
U.S. Rep. Gregory Landsman, a Democrat who represents Ohio’s 1st Congressional District, called the directive a “last minute change of the rules designed to confuse voters and restrict our right to vote.”
According to LaRose, Ohio law generally prohibits a person from returning another person’s absentee ballot unless the person is a relative who is authorized to do, or unless the person is acting as an employee or contractor of the U.S. Postal Service or a private carrier.
“There is an important exception for disabled voters,” the directive said, “and the persons assisting them, under a recent federal court decision applying Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act.”
That decision stemmed from a case brought last year by pro-voting groups and an individual voter. They challenged part of Ohio’s 2023 voter suppression law that imposed restrictions on who can assist voters with disabilities in returning their completed absentee ballots. A federal district court in July ruled the law violates Section 208 of the Voting Rights Act.
In a statement to local affiliate Fox 19, LaRose defended the directive but also seemed to blame the federal court decision.
“It is my duty to maintain the careful balance between security and convenience,” he said. “Unfortunately, recent irresponsible activist litigation upset that balance and created an unacceptable level of risk to the integrity of our process. I was left no choice but to implement this thoughtful and balanced policy in response.”
LaRose said in the directive that Ohio’s “prohibition on ballot harvesting is still required to be enforced with respect to voters who are not disabled.”