voter suppression
New Ohio voter ID law also excludes state veterans’ IDs
Franklin County Recorder Daniel O’Connor is blasting Ohio’s Republican leaders for excluding county-issued veterans’ identification from the list of IDs one can use to vote under the state’s controversial new law. Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 458 earlier this month after it was rushed through a lame-duck session by the heavily gerrymandered legislature in […]
“Noncitizen” will now be listed on Ohio IDs. Advocates worry that will endanger immigrants
In a little-noticed measure, whether a person is a “noncitizen” will now be printed on driver’s licenses and state IDs under a controversial law that was just signed by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine. Critics worry that the requirement addresses a nonexistent problem while making it more difficult for documented immigrants to get IDs they need […]
In a state with 1M license suspensions, Ohio voter ID law could depress turnout
When Gov. Mike DeWine last week signed what’s been called the nation’s strictest voter ID law, it raised fears that it would disenfranchise large numbers of voters in poor communities where people are less likely to meet the new requirements. Those fears seem to be supported by a September report that estimates 1 million Ohioans […]
Gen-Z voters worry about possible age restrictions if Ohio Issue 2 is passed
The following article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and is published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content-sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ articles, it is not available for free republication by other news outlets as it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland. Issue 2 on Ohio’s 2022 general election ballot is worrying some Gen-Z voters, due to […]
Election officials risk criminal charges under 31 new GOP-imposed penalties
Second in a two-part series. See part one here. Since the 2020 election, Iowa has enacted one new felony and two new misdemeanor offenses targeting election officials. The state’s omnibus election law, passed in 2021, criminalizes election officials who fail to perform their duties, don’t adequately maintain voter lists, or interfere with other people performing their […]
David Hecker: Corporations should stop funding politicians who back voter suppression
Sometimes it is hard to live our values. We try hard to do so, and I for one, know that at times I falter. But while slipping at times is understandable, there are lines we must strive never to cross. Voting rights is not a complicated issue. It’s a question of fundamental values — justice, […]
Criminalizing the vote: GOP-led states enacted 102 new election penalties after 2020
First in a two-part series During the 2020 election, Rhonda Briggins and her sorority sisters spent days providing voters in metro Atlanta with water and snacks as they waited in long lines at polling places. The lines for early voting and on Election Day at times stretched on for hours. As the national co-chair for […]
LaRose says Dems might wreck election integrity, touts Trump, who’s suspected of election fraud
Ohio’s top elections official on Sunday tweeted that if Democrats win in Ohio they might undermine secure elections. Then he boasted of an endorsement from someone who is himself under investigation for possible election fraud. It might demonstrate the needle Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is trying to thread as he runs on a […]
White House report highlights voting barriers for Native American voters
Native Americans face recurring and unnecessary barriers when it comes to exercising their right to vote, according to a report released by the White House. “Many of the voting barriers faced by Native American communities are persistent and longstanding, with deep historical roots,” the report states. The report identified a wide range of barriers that impact […]
Decline in federal grant funding for local elections criticized by advocates
WASHINGTON — The $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill passed by Congress last week includes $75 million in Help America Vote Act grants — a major reduction compared to years past. Experts say the $75 million is insufficient to fund local elections and leaves local election offices without resources to improve election infrastructure and protect the […]
Voting snafus in Texas primary show what may be on the way for other states
HOUSTON — Standing outside a polling location in the historically Black neighborhood of Kashmere Gardens on Election Day, lieutenant governor candidate Carla Brailey predicted that Texas’ performance in 2022’s first primary would gain national attention — no matter the outcome. Texas is already a model for other Republican-controlled states for its new law that makes […]
Texans go to the polls under sweeping new voting restrictions
HOUSTON — With less than two days until Texas’ primary election, Cedric and Myrtis Tatterson sat in a community center gym in Houston to fulfill the training required of them as election judges. Though they have both served as judges in numerous past elections, Tuesday’s primary will be the first since Texas’ Republican-controlled legislature passed […]