elections
Voting begins today for congressional primaries in Ohio’s 11th, 15th districts
Early voting begins today for the Aug. 3 special election in Ohio, which features two congressional primary elections and a handful of local ballot issues across the state. Most Ohioans do not have anything to vote for in this special election. But all eyes are on the 11th and 15th Ohio Congressional District primaries: 11th […]
U.S. Supreme Court upholds Arizona ban on ‘ballot harvesting’
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld Arizona’s ban on third-party ballot collections, reversing the 9th Circuit’s ruling last year that the prohibition violated the Voting Rights Act and raising the bar on future voting rights lawsuits. In a 6-3 opinion, the high court ruled on Thursday that Arizona’s 2016 law doesn’t violate Section 2 of the Voting […]
Should Ohio candidates be able to use campaign funds on child care costs?
If Ohio wants a more diverse set of political candidates, state Sen. Tina Maharath believes the campaign rules should be more favorable to busy parents. Maharath, a Columbus Democrat, proposes the way to do that is to allow candidates to use donations to pay for child care costs while they are on the campaign trail. […]
Ohio’s future is on the line(s) with redistricting in 2021
The most important issue to face Ohioans in 2021 isn’t even on most of our radar screens. Seriously, when was the last time you dove into the ramifications of redistricting with friends? I get it. Not a sexy subject. The map drawing process to reconfigure district boundaries in the state is complicated. But there’s a […]
Senators deadlock on major U.S. elections bill in committee vote
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats on Tuesday tackled a massive voting reforms bill in committee in a heated daylong debate. But the final vote on the bill by the Senate Rules Committee was a 9-9 tie, which means Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer likely would have to use a Senate procedure to bring the legislation to […]
Ohio House GOP’s proposed voting law changes, explained
Two Republican lawmakers recently unveiled their election reform bill to colleagues, proposing changes to how Ohioans can register to vote and cast absentee ballots in future elections. The bill has not yet been introduced, but Reps. Bill Seitz of Green Twp. and Sharon Ray of Wadsworth outlined their proposals in a cosponsor request to fellow […]
Georgia voting law pummeled at U.S. Senate hearing on ‘Jim Crow 2021’
WASHINGTON — Georgia’s new voting law was at the center of Tuesday’s U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, where senators discussed restoration of a key section in the Voting Rights Act that would prevent states, mostly in the South, from changing their election laws without federal approval. During the more than four-hour hearing, witnesses opposed to the […]
Bill seeks to end ‘dark money’ spending in Ohio elections
Republican lawmakers are proposing to revamp some of Ohio’s campaign finance laws that would shine a light on “dark money” groups. Public officials from both parties have called for reforms in the wake of the House Bill 6 scandal, which saw the speaker of the Ohio House arrested as well as widespread attention paid to […]
How national voting rights bill would impact Ohio’s election system
As state legislatures across the country consider how to alter their election systems, Democrats in Congress are pushing for nationwide reforms they say would make voting more accessible to all Americans. Several of the changes outlined in House Resolution 1 are already in place here in Ohio. Groups making up the Ohio Voter Rights Coalition […]
There were many efforts to change Ohio election laws in 2020, but few succeeded
More Ohioans voted in the 2020 General Election than in any other election in state history. Elections officials, voter rights advocates and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are still looking into ways to improve voting access for the years to come. There were numerous legislative efforts to change Ohio’s elections system in big […]
A quiet election night winner? The coronavirus
Even hours before polls closed Tuesday, it was clear the virus that causes COVID-19 was in for a good night in Ohio. COVID-19 is infecting, hospitalizing and killing record numbers of Ohioans at an accelerated clip, according to data from the Ohio Department of Health. More new infections were reported Tuesday than any day during […]
Demas: RBG is gone. This is why we fight.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, best known as a steely champion of women’s equality, gave voice to the voiceless. And as a legendary Supreme Court justice, she was committed to ensuring their rightful place in America until the day she died. We have lost so much as a country during these last four years of Donald Trump’s […]