Ohio: Kasich’s signing of election law ‘repeal’ doesn’t end debate | Cincinnati.com

Ohio’s march toward what’s expected to be a nationally watched 2012 election took an apparently unprecedented step Tuesday, one that could put election officials into court before a ballot is cast. The potential scenario emerged Tuesday when Gov. John Kasich signed a law that repeals a controversial election bill passed in 2011 by the GOP-dominated General Assembly. The 2011 bill, which created voting restrictions that Democrats and some good-government groups decried, was to go before voters in November. The gambit, apparently the first time that Ohio legislators have ever effectively killed a referendum destined for voters, sets up a possible lawsuit over a question that could impact this fall’s election: May state legislators repeal a bill that has not yet taken effect and that is up for referendum? Democrats argue the answer is no.

Ohio: GOP leaders withdraw state Supreme Court lawsuit over provisional ballot rules | The Republic

Republican lawmakers on Friday dropped their lawsuit against the state’s elections chief over the handling of provisional ballots after a federal judge threatened them with contempt of court. Secretary of State Jon Husted had defended his decision to require county election boards to follow U.S. District Court Judge Algenon Marbley’s decree instead of state law when counting the ballots. At issue were requirements for providing identification when a voter has to cast a provisional ballot, typically a ballot cast in the wrong precinct. Senate President Tom Niehaus and House Majority Leader Lou Blessing sued Husted, a fellow Republican, last month, arguing he was violating the state constitution by his orders to the county election boards.

Ohio: Jefferson County: Election costs on the rise | HeraldStarOnline.com

Jefferson County commissioners Thursday agreed to appropriate more money to the county board of elections to cover increased expenses associated with the upcoming presidential election. Frank Bruzzese, board of elections board member, said presidential elections are always more expensive to conduct, especially this year when every voter will receive an application for an absentee ballot. The commissioners appropriated $605,000 to the board of elections, with the state contributing an additional $17,000 for mapping congressional districts. Bruzzese said the board of elections spent $746,000 four years ago during the presidential election. Commissioners agreed to appropriate an additional $102,000 to the board of elections, bringing the budget total to $722,000. Bruzzese said that should be enough to cover expenses associated with the general election in November.

Ohio: Voting law to be subject of congressional hearing | Cincinnati.com

Ohio’s controversial new voting law will get some congressional scrutiny next week, when a top Senate Democrat convenes a field hearing on the measure in Cleveland. Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate’s No. 2 Democratic leader and chairman of a key Senate Judiciary subcommittee, announced Monday that he would hold a hearing on the law May 7 at the Carl B. Stokes United States Court House. Durbin, of Illinois, and other Democrats fear the Ohio law—and other similar state restrictions—are aimed at making it harder for citizens to vote in the November election, particularly lower-income and minority voters who tend to support Democrats. “A spate of recently passed state voting laws seem designed to restrict voting by making it harder for millions of disabled, young, minority, rural, elderly, homeless, and low income Americans to vote,” Durbin said in a statement Monday.

Ohio: Hunter finally declared winner in Hamilton County judge election | Cincinnati.com

One year, five months and 25 days after voters cast their ballots, Hamilton County declared a winner Friday in the 2010 election for juvenile court judge. Democrat Tracie Hunter beat Republican John Williams by 71 votes in what is believed to be the longest election in county history. Hunter trailed Williams by 23 votes after the election on Nov. 2, 2010, but a court order to count about 300 contested provisional ballots put her over the top. The long, politically-charged fight over the ballots became an early skirmish between Democrats and Republicans in the run-up to the 2012 presidential election, as both sides angled to shape voting rules and policies.

Ohio: GOP, Democrats close to election-law deal | The Columbus Dispatch

A potential last-minute agreement between House Republicans and Democrats could end a bitter fight over the repeal of a GOP-crafted election-law overhaul. Just minutes before voting to repeal House Bill 194 — and as House Democrats bombed away on the GOP in floor speeches — House Speaker William G. Batchelder, R-Medina, and Minority Leader Armond Budish, D-Beachwood, worked out a deal to suspend the vote. Republicans had planned to repeal House Bill 194 and end the November referendum effort. But Fair Elections Ohio, the coalition of Democrats and progressive groups that worked closely with President Barack Obama’s re-election team to challenge the law, resisted the repeal. The group argued that it would deny people the right to vote against the law and would have blocked early voting in the three days before Election Day. The group and other Democrats had promised to fight the GOP repeal effort in court. Republicans argued that the opposition simply was a political effort to keep the referendum to help drive up voter turnout.

Ohio: Juvenile judge race close to conclusion | Cincinnati.com

The winner of the 2010 election for Hamilton County juvenile court judge should be known within a month, when almost 300 disputed ballots are counted. Members of the county’s Board of Elections agreed Tuesday to begin counting the ballots in the next week or so to comply with a federal court order. The election, believed to be the longest in Hamilton County history, was supposed to end 17 months ago but has dragged on because of a court battle over whether to count the disputed ballots. The dispute involves provisional ballots cast in the race between Democrat Tracie Hunter and Republican John Williams, who leads Hunter by 23 votes. Williams’ lead could be in jeopardy if the nearly 300 provisional ballots are counted because most of those ballots were cast in predominantly Democratic precincts.

Ohio: County ready to count ballots in disputed Hamilton County race | Cincinnati.com

The election that is believed to be the longest in Hamilton County history isn’t over yet. But it’s getting close. A federal appeals court ruling Monday cleared the way to count some 300 disputed ballots in the razor-close election for Hamilton County juvenile court judge, which took place 17 months ago. The decision does not end the long court battle over the ballots, but it requires county election officials to count the ballots, declare a victor and seat the winning judge while the legal fight continues for months, or even years, in the federal courts. The Board of Elections will hold a special meeting Tuesday to discuss how the ballots will be counted and how long it might take. “I think we are all ready to try to get this thing moved to a resolution,” said Tim Burke, the county’s Democratic Party chairman and a member of the Board of Elections.

Ohio: GOP leaders sue over provisional ballots | The Marietta Times

Ohio’s elections chief is violating the state constitution by requiring county election boards to follow a federal court decree instead of state law when it comes to counting provisional ballots, GOP lawmakers alleged in a lawsuit Monday. At issue are requirements for providing identification when a voter has to cast a provisional ballot, typically a ballot cast in the wrong precinct. A 2006 state law laid out the requirements for when such ballots are counted, starting with voters who have only the last four digits of a Social Security number as identification. In general, state law is more restrictive than the federal decree when it comes to prohibiting provisional ballots. For example, the law doesn’t allow provisional ballots for votes cast in the wrong precinct because of a poll worker’s mistake, whereas the decree would allow such votes to be counted.

Ohio: Election-law changes opposed by League of Women Voters, Common Cause and others | Youngstown News

Election advocates urged lawmakers Thursday to refrain from passing any more changes to the state’s election laws, saying their actions to date already have caused too much confusion among voters. The League of Women Voters of Ohio, Common Cause Ohio and other groups want the Republicans who control the Ohio Senate and House to stop a pre-emptive repeal effort on House Bill 194, the controversial GOP-backed election-reform package that is the subject of a November referendum. And they want the Legislature to leave laws as-is until after the presidential election. “Enough already,” said Carrie Davis, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio. “In the last 12 months, the Legislature has considered but not passed a bill on voter ID. They passed a comprehensive voting bill, HB 194. Two weeks later, they went back and fixed things that they missed and mistakes they had made. … There was then a referendum effort on HB 194 to stop it from going into effect. And now, they are planning to pass a repeal of HB 194. … We’ve been told … that they plan to introduce and pass yet another election bill before they adjourn for the summer. All of this in 12 months. It’s too much.”

Ohio: Senate passes bill that would repeal election reform | The-Daily-Record.com

The Ohio Senate OK’d legislation Wednesday that would repeal controversial GOP-backed election reform that is the subject of a November ballot issue. The final vote on Senate Bill 295 was a party-line 23-10, with Democrats vehemently opposed. “You have messed up election laws and where people and how people vote this entire general assembly,” said Sen. Mike Skindell, a Democrat from the Cleveland area. “And this is a prime example of your disaster in election laws in this state. You are undermining the will of the people. You’re trying to subvert the referendum process….” The legislation heads to the Ohio House, where some Republican leaders have voiced concern about the constitutionality of a repeal. Republican House Speaker Bill Batchelder, from Medina, told reporters Wednesday that there was no precedent for such a move, though he would support a repeal.

Ohio: Senate repeals election law despite ballot issue | The Columbus Dispatch

The Federal Election Commission overstepped its bounds in allowing groups that fund certain election ads to keep their financiers anonymous, a federal judge ruled Friday. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson’s ruling could pave the way to requiring groups that spend money on electioneering communications — ads that don’t expressly advocate for or against a candidate running for federal office — to disclose their donors. The FEC ruled in 2007 that corporations and nonprofits did not have to reveal the identities of those who financed such ads. That regulation came in response to a Supreme Court ruling that gave more latitude to nonprofit groups — like the Karl Rove-backed Crossroads GPS and the President Barack Obama-leaning Priorities USA — on pre-election ads. Campaign-finance regulations have received new scrutiny this election cycle, following a handful of federal court rulings that stripped away long-established limits on how much individuals and organizations may contribute to groups favoring certain candidates.

Ohio: Senate Votes To Repeal Election Overhaul Bill | NBC 4i

The Republican-controlled Ohio Senate has approved a plan to repeal a contentious new election law that shrunk early voting in the presidential battleground state. The bill cleared the chamber along party lines Wednesday, over the strenuous objections of Democrats. It heads to the Ohio House. Republican Sen. Bill Coley called the bill nothing more than a repeal of the law Democrats and their allies are working to turn back in November. “If there were provisions of the bill that were deemed so terrible as to trigger a referendum, then lets revisit the topic,” Coley said.  “Let’s hit the reset button in an effort to find common ground.”

Ohio: Panel delays vote on Ohio elections overhaul repeal | cleveland.com

An Ohio Senate panel delayed a vote Wednesday to repeal a contentious new election law that shrinks early voting in the presidential battleground state, among other changes. The elections overhaul has been on hold since September, after opponents gathered thousands of signatures from voters to put a repeal question on November ballots. Republican leaders who control the Ohio Legislature say the state can avoid a costly referendum campaign and give opponents what they want by repealing it. But Democrats and other opponents say voters have the right — not state lawmakers — to decide this fall whether the law should be scrapped. The GOP is pushing a measure to get rid of the new law and leave in place the old rules governing Ohio elections. The bill also reaffirms a separate change made last year that cuts off in-person early voting on the Friday evening before Election Day.

Ohio: Rogue political robocalls on the rise in Ohio | cleveland.com

Shadowy unregistered political groups — some of which claim to be “super PACs” — are placing apparently illegal robocalls to voters across Ohio and the country. Experts say the latest form of dirty politics has the power to sway elections, and the problem is escalating nationwide. A Cincinnati-area Democratic congressional primary candidate, David Krikorian, says his defeat at the ballot box on March 6 may have been caused by a robocall that went out to voters the prior weekend, urging them to vote for an unknown candidate who didn’t actively campaign, instead of Krikorian, who was endorsed by many Democratic groups.

Ohio: Inquiry launched into PAC supporting little known candidate | USAToday

Federal prosecutors in southern Ohio are looking into whether a mysterious political action committee that helped nominate an unknown congressional candidate violated federal election laws. The “Victory Ohio Super PAC” made a series of automated phone calls supporting Waverly, Ohio truck driver William R. Smith in last week’s Democratic primary for Ohio’s 2nd Congressional District seat. The PAC did not disclose its activity to the Federal Election Commission, which it would be required to do if it spent more than $1,000, so there’s no record of who is responsible for the calls.

Ohio: Mystery super PAC may have violated election law – USAToday.com

Four days before Ohio’s primary election, Democratic voters in the 2nd Congressional District received a blitz of automated telephone calls supporting William R. Smith, a candidate who didn’t campaign, raised no money and gave no media interviews before the election. On election night, Smith won by 59 votes against a well-known, better funded and harder working candidate who had the endorsement of major Democratic groups. So who gets credit for helping Smith secure the Democratic nomination to Congress? No one knows. The “Victory Ohio Super PAC” claimed credit for the “robocalls,” but it is not registered with the Federal Election Commission and hasn’t disclosed any contributions or spending to federal regulators.

Ohio: William Smith, the invisible candidate | Cincinnati.com

William R. Smith is the invisible candidate. No one has seen him; no one has heard him speak. Outside of his home county of Pike, there is probably no Democrat who could recognize him on sight. Tuesday, the Waverly resident won – barely – the popular vote in the 2nd District’s Democratic primary, while Brad Wenstrup was busy in the Republican primary upending a GOP incumbent member of Congress, Jean Schmidt. He came out ahead of Madeira’s David Krikorian, who ran against Schmidt as an independent in 2008, by a scant 59 votes out of slightly over 20,000 cast. Once the official count is done later this month, there may well be an automatic recount. “I have never seen. I don’t know him,” Krikorian said Wednesday. He blamed his loss on a mysterious SuperPAC that may have paid for calls for Smith and other Democrats.

Ohio: Some Ohio voters leave polling places after ballot confusion | The Columbus Dispatch

Some Franklin County voters left their polling places without voting this morning after confusion over which ballot to give them led to delays. The confusion has been cleared up, said Ben Piscitelli, spokesman for the Franklin County Board of Elections. “We’re urging them to come back and vote,” he said of those who left before they were given a ballot. Poll workers took contact information from voters who had signed in, but who said they had to leave before the confusion was cleared up. Workers were contacting those voters and telling them to return, said Dana Walch, deputy director of the Board of Elections. “We believe it was a small number of people who left without voting,” Walch said. In many cases, poll workers called the board’s hotline and had the situation resolved in a few minutes, he said.

Ohio: Counties finding out touch-screen voting systems are costly to maintain | Middleton Journal

Counties across Ohio could save millions of dollars by requiring voters to use paper ballots instead of touch-screen voting machines, a Dayton Daily News analysis of a state audit has found. A recent state audit of Butler County contends that the county could save more than $4.5 million over five years by making the switch. Butler, the state’s eighth largest county, is one of 52 counties that uses touch-screen, ATM-like machines. Others include Montgomery, Greene, Miami and Darke. Following the same math used for the Butler County audit, Montgomery County possibly could save $5.5 million over five years, and Greene County nearly $1.4 million.

Ohio: Rick Santorum’s Ohio Delegate Problems Pile Up | ABC News

Even if Rick Santorum wins Ohio on Super Tuesday, he won’t be able to claim all of its delegates. In fact, he is at risk of forfeiting more than one-quarter of them. In three of the state’s 16 congressional districts, including two that are near Ohio’s border with Pennsylvania, Santorum will lose any delegates he might have won because his campaign failed to meet the state’s eligibility requirements months ago. Those three districts alone take 9 delegates out of a total of 66 off the table for Santorum. But it gets worse: Nine more Ohio delegates may also be in jeopardy. Sources say that in six other congressional districts — the third, fourth, eighth, tenth, twelfth and sixteenth — Santorum submitted fewer names than required to be eligible for all three delegates up-for-grabs in each district. That means even if he wins in those places, he might not be able to receive the full contingent of delegates.

Ohio: Senator says ‘step back’ and ‘reassess’ Ohio election law bill | The-Daily-Record.com

A Senate committee began hearings Wednesday on legislation to repeal controversial GOP-backed election law changes, a move that would stop a referendum from appearing on the November ballot. Proponents want lawmakers to give Democrats who gathered enough signatures to place House Bill 194 before voters what they want — a full repeal, with a new election reform package negotiated between Republicans and the minority party. “We should step back and reassess the situation,” Sen. Bill Coley, a Republican from southwestern Ohio, told members of the Senate’s Government Oversight and Reform Committee. “Clearly, some issues should be revisited.”

Ohio: How to make every vote count – As we approach Nov. 6, provisional ballots still threaten trouble | Cincinnati.com

The problems that Ohio elections officials have with provisional ballots got worse in 2011. An Enquirer analysis of provisional voting across Ohio and in Southwest Ohio shows that more provisional ballots were cast statewide and in the region in the 2011 election than in 2009, the last “off year” election. Yet a smaller proportion of provisional ballots was counted, the analysis shows. Butler, Hamilton and Warren counties bucked that trend. The analysis shows lackluster results from efforts to curb provisional voting. It also raises questions as Ohio heads toward a presidential election where it may hold crucial electoral votes – and where the outcome is expected to be tight. That’s because provisional ballots, handed out when there’s a question about whether a voter is eligible or qualified, sometimes cause controversy in close races.

Ohio: Election law may be repealed | Cincinnati.com

Senate President Tom Niehaus announced Thursday that majority Republicans introduced legislation to repeal the divisive elections overhaul bill that is scheduled for a referendum vote in November, Gongwer News Service reports. Sen. Bill Coley (R-Middletown) is the sponsor of the bill (SB295). Republicans hope “to take a step back and revisit the debate in hopes of reaching a more bipartisan consensus,” Niehaus, R-New Richmond, said in a statement.

Ohio: Senate Republicans plan to repeal controversial elections law | cleveland.com

Ohio Senate Republicans on Thursday set into motion a plan to repeal a controversial election law and replace it with new changes that would take effect before the November election. But the House Speaker isn’t yet on board with the plan, and a group of voting rights advocates have vowed to seek a referendum — with the backing of President Barack Obama’s campaign — if Ohio lawmakers pass a new elections law. A bill was introduced Thursday to repeal House Bill 194 — the election law overhaul package GOP lawmakers passed last year that restricted opportunities for early voting and made other changes that opponents said amounted to voter suppression.

Ohio: Senate Republicans take another crack at election reform before the fall presidential election | cleveland.com

Ohio might have new voting laws in place before the November presidential election after all. Senate Republicans are working on a plan that would repeal last year’s controversial election overhaul package and replace it with a more narrow set of reforms that could take effect before the Nov. 6 election. The latest changes would incorporate some ideas from the GOP’s previous attempt at reform – House Bill 194 – and prior legislative efforts that ultimately failed. Democrats say the sudden push for new election laws is nothing more than a political ploy to tilt the presidential election in Republicans’ favor. But Republicans insist their only interest is to improve election day operations.
Regardless of motive, the potential for voter confusion is high, because lawmakers have been tinkering with election laws since the beginning of last year. If they pass new legislation before the fall election, voters will be casting ballots under different rules than the March 6 primary.

Ohio: Senate bill proposes repeal of election law | news-herald.com

A proposal to repeal Ohio’s contentious new election law will soon be introduced in the state’s Senate, the leader of the Republican-led chamber said Wednesday. The law trims early voting in the presidential battleground state, among other changes. It’s been on hold since September, until voters can decide this fall whether it should be tossed. Plans to replace the law are still being discussed, Senate President Tom Niehaus told reporters. The New Richmond Republican said it’s too early to tell whether any new legislation could be passed before November’s general election. “The goal is, whatever we do, that there be clarity for the November elections,” Niehaus said.

Ohio: GOP falling out of over Ohio elections law overhaul | WKSU

Ohioans are set to vote on a referendum on  a controversial election overhaul that majority Republicans pushed through the Legislature last year. Minority Democrats succeeded in getting enough petition signatures to put that issue on the ballot so voters have a chance to kill it. But now, Ohio’s top elections official  — Republican Jon Husted — is suggesting lawmakers repeal that law. Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted says he wants legislators to repeal the law so the referendum won’t be needed.  But legislative leaders are not happy because they say Husted didn’t talk about that suggestion with them first…before taking the matter public Republican Senate President Tom Niehaus.

Ohio: Elections chief wants repeal of elections bill | Dayton Daily News

Ohio lawmakers should repeal a new law that shortens early voting in the presidential battleground state, rather than allow voters to decide in November whether the measure should be scrapped, the state’s top election official said Wednesday. Secretary of State Jon Husted, a Republican, said an expected fall campaign over the law would create confusion for voters as to which rules are in place. And he wants the GOP-controlled Legislature to come up with a new proposal after this year’s election. “We don’t need the confusion that will come by debating a referendum at the same time we’re trying to inform people how to vote,” Husted told local election officials at a conference in Columbus.

Ohio: Voting machine battery replacements add costs | The Chillicothe Gazette

The Ross County Board of Elections is facing an unexpected $18,525 cost because of a state requirement to change batteries in all its voting machines. Director Nora Madru delivered news of the directive, which was issued by Secretary of State Jon Husted, to Ross County commissioners at their Tuesday meeting. The life of the batteries, which are soldered into the machines, is supposed to be five to seven years, Madru said. Machines in Ross County and across the state are approaching the life expectancy of the batteries. “With a presidential election coming up, you don’t want to take a chance,” Madru said, adding that officials don’t have a choice in the matter anyway.