What's New in Election Law

by Greater Cleveland Voter Coalition

Some important facts about the coming primary and general elections and changes in Ohio law:

1. The primary elections in Ohio are May 2, 2006. The deadline for registration, change of address or name is 30 days before the election, or April 3. You have to declare a political party in order to vote for candidates in a primary election.

2. The general election is November 7, 2006. The deadline for registration, change of address or name is Oct. 10.

If you are registering for the first time, changing your address or your name, call the Board of Elections several weeks after you register, ask for the Registration Dept., and find out if you are properly registered.(The phone number of the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections is: 216-443-3200.) Call well before the deadline so that you have time to fix any problem that may exist.

3. The punch card voting system will no longer be used in Ohio, in order for Ohio to be in compliance with the new Help America Vote Act. Electronic voting machines (know as DRE's) are set to be introduced in the May 2006 primary. The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections says it will have people at the polls to assist you in using the new machines.

4. Starting in November, 2006 all voters will now have to provide ID every time they vote, whether in person or by mail. This is a new law. (See below for more information on what kind of ID you need.)

5.If you want to vote by absentee ballot, you no longer have to give a reason. Any voter can vote absentee. This is also a new law. But there are some new ID requirements, spelled out on the application form.

6. To get an absentee ballot application mailed to you, call your board of elections and ask for it. The application tells you what ID you have to provide: your birthdate, and one of the following:

• Your Ohio driver's license number, or
• The last four digits of your social security number, or
• Copy of a current and valid photo identification, a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or other government document that shows your name and address. (A "current and valid photo ID" means either a driver's license or a state ID.)

The board of elections will mail you an absentee ballot, which has instructions on it. You will have to provide ID when you send the ballot in. If you don't, your vote won't be counted. The ID can be any one of the above-listed items. In Cuyahoga County, the ID doesn't HAVE to be the same ID that you provided when you applied for the absentee ballot.

The deadline for requesting an absentee ballot by mail is by noon on the third day before the election, but we advise doing so a few weeks before the election to be sure your ballot gets to you and gets back to the board in time. "Your completed ballot must be delivered to your county board of elections office in person by you or a near relative, or by mail not later than the close of polls on election day." (Ohio Revised Code, Chapter 3509.)

7. When you go in person to vote at the polls, you MUST be in the correct precinct. Otherwise your vote won't count.

8. When you go to vote in person, you must provide the following ID:

• A current and valid photo identification, or
• A copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and address of the elector.

9. If you can't to that, you can provide the last 4 digits of your social security number. However, if you do that, you can't vote a regular ballot. You must vote a provisional ballot.

10. If you don't have a social security number, you can affirm who you are under penalty of election falsification. In this case, you must also vote a provisional ballot.

Note that the ID requirements for voting an absentee ballot by mail and voting in person at the polls are slightly different. If you go to the polls and want to be sure you can vote a regular ballot, not a provisional ballot, be sure you have the required ID with you. If you vote an absentee ballot by mail, be sure you fill in the required information on the return inner envelope.

Note also that acceptable forms of photo ID must be issued by the U.S. Government or the Government of the State of Ohio.

So Ohio State Driver's Licenses are OK, also Ohio state ID cards with your photo on. But student ID or employer ID badges are not OK because they are not issued by the U.S. or Ohio Government. A military ID is OK as long as it has the elector's name and address.

Look for additional information to come.