Ohio: Secretary of State proposes changes for November vote | Segann March/Cincinnati Enquirer

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is hoping his proposed changes for November’s  election will help make the voting process more efficient for voters. After April’s extended primary election, many voters complained about the vote-by-mail only process, a decision made by the state to prevent the spread of COVID-19. LaRose believes his “tweaks” will benefit all parties on Nov. 3, but those ideas will have to pass through the General Assembly first. LaRose’s proposal calls for the state to set an earlier deadline to request an absentee ballot, allow voters to request ballots online instead of printing out a form that then has to be mailed and provide postage-paid envelopes to return those ballots. The goal of the first idea is to prevent voters from procrastinating. Postage-paid envelopes would eliminate the need to visit the post office if renewed virus-related restrictions become necessary. The idea behind the last proposal is to prevent the need to visit a post office if there are renewed virus-related restrictions on movements.

Ohio: Democrats call for streamlined ballot requests, expanded voter registration for November election | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

A group of elected Ohio Democrats are calling for expanded voter registration and streamlined ballot requests, among other policy changes, to help prepare the state for a November election that could be upended by coronavirus. The changes are meant to increase the number of Ohioans who vote early while reducing Election Day lines, something that will be helpful whether or not a second wave of coronavirus outbreaks lead to public-health restrictions that close polling places, the Democrats said. Typically, about one-third of voters in Ohio vote early, and Democrats say they’d like to see the number get closer to one-half. “We’re not saying this should be all-mail, and we’re not saying this should be all in-person,” said Ohio House Minority Leader Emilia Sykes, an Akron Democrat. “What we are saying is we need to start preparing for every possible scenario, because we have no clue what October could look like.” Some of the proposals, like allowing people to apply online for mail-in ballots, providing postage-paid envelopes for applications and ballots, and increasing funding for local county elections offices, are supported by Republican Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose. That sets up the possibility of a bipartisan coalition supporting elections changes in Ohio as it and likely other states debate expanding mail-in voting against the backdrop of risks posed by the coronavirus.

Ohio: Ohio’s election was a mess. It would be a disaster at the national level. | Stephen Stromberg/The Washington Post

The nightmare scenario for the November presidential vote is a larger repeat of Wisconsin’s chaotic and dangerous April state Supreme Court election, in which state Republican leaders risked the health of voters in search of partisan electoral advantage. The result was interminable polling-place lines and untold numbers of people deterred from voting. These consequences were widely predicted, and the voter suppression seemed to be the point. But there is another, perhaps more likely, model of pandemic election failure: that of Ohio, which completed its primary process on Friday. State officials fumbled into the vote, recognizing that covid-19 would force changes in voter behavior but failing to prepare for the strain those changes would put on their system. They failed to account for how preexisting problems with absentee-voting systems and antiquated voter rules would be amplified. The result was voter confusion, accounts of effective voter disenfranchisement and rock-bottom voter turnout.

Ohio: The Primary May Be Over For Voters, But It’s Just Getting Started For Boards Of Elections | Nick Robertson/WVXU

Even though Ohio’s primary ended April 28, the election isn’t over just yet. Results aren’t official until they are certified by the Hamilton County Board of Elections, and for them, the process is just getting started. On election night, the Board of Elections conducted an unofficial ballot count of all ballots received by mail and in-person, but many ballots were still on the way. They are now still accepting ballots until May 5, as long as they were postmarked before Election Day. Ballots from overseas and military voters will be accepted until May 8. Additionally, voters who did not present valid IDs when voting and submitted provisional ballots or had mislabeled absentee ballots have until May 5 to “cure” their ballots and ensure they are counted. Provisional ballots are ballots submitted by voters that had errors or could not be verified. According to Hamilton  County Board of Election Deputy Director Sally Krisel, common reasons for submitting provisional ballots are name changes, address changes, lack of valid ID, or requesting an absentee ballot and not receiving it in time.

Ohio: Secretary of State Frank LaRose outlines changes needed for general election | Rick Rouan/The Columbus Dispatch

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is all-in for in-person voting in November’s presidential election, but he is offering some “tweaks” he believes will make the general election smoother than the coronavirus-extended primary. The state needs to allow online requests for absentee ballots, provide postage-paid envelopes for both absentee ballots and requests, and set an earlier deadline for requesting absentee ballots to prepare for a potential increase in voters casting ballots by mail, he said. But it also needs to encourage boards of elections to consolidate polling places and step up its recruitment of poll workers for in-person voting even as it encourages voting by mail to stop the spread of COVID-19, he said. “In a usual year, I would not want to make large changes this late in the game, but this is not a usual year. These are unusual times. We have to respond to the unique situation we find ourselves in with these changes,” LaRose told The Dispatch on Tuesday.

Ohio: Democratic Lawmakers Propose Blockchain Voting in Elections Overhaul Bill | Danny Nelson/Yahoo News

Democrats in the Ohio House of Representatives have proposed launching a blockchain voting pilot for overseas military voters registered in the Buckeye State. Introduced Tuesday as part of the Democrats’ elections law overhaul, the bill calls on Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose to “establish a pilot program” of blockchain voting specifically for uniformed service members stationed outside the U.S. The bill was introduced by Reps. Beth Liston and Michele Lepore-Hagan, and cosponsored by 16 other Democrats. The proposal is unusually detailed on blockchain’s role. If passed, it would see military members transmit their ballots to election officials via “encrypted blockchain technology” that “protects the security and integrity of the process and protects the voter’s privacy.” The receiving board of elections would then print out that ballot “for counting purposes.”

Ohio: Lawmakers, secretary of state at odds over provisional ballot counts | Sarah Elms/Toledo Blade

Unless you have a disability, lack a permanent address, or properly requested an absentee ballot but never received it in the mail, your in-person vote in Ohio on April 28 won’t count. That’s according to a directive sent by Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose on Friday to the state’s boards of elections. But three Democratic state lawmakers, including Rep. Paula Hicks-Hudson (D., Toledo), argue that refusing to count all in-person ballots cast April 28, regardless of whether someone met one of those three criteria, disenfranchises voters. Ms. Hicks-Hudson on Monday called the secretary of state’s directive “an insult to the voters of Ohio,” while Mr. LaRose, a Republican, contends the very law she and her colleagues passed in March is what prevents some votes from being counted. She said there was widespread confusion among registered voters about how, when, and where to cast their ballots in Ohio’s first mail-in election after the in-person March 17 primary was called off because of coronavirus concerns. Many voters showed up to their respective boards of elections on April 28 believing that they could vote in person, just as they would have on March 17, she said.

Ohio: The never-ending primary election: it could have been worse, but fixes needed, elections officials say | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

In talking with people closely involved with Ohio’s finally concluded presidential primary election, here’s the best thing people most had to say about it. It wasn’t good. But it could have been much worse. “I wouldn’t want to do it again in that kind of timeframe, but we did it,” Llyn McCoy, director of the Greene County Board of Elections, said Wednesday. Ohio’s first vote-by-mail election concluded Tuesday, five weeks after Gov. Mike DeWine canceled in-person voting on March 17 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The problems that arose — and the degree to which things worked — will be studied as Ohio considers how to prepare for the possibility of another outbreak before the general election in November. The long Tuesday lines of voters at county boards of election feared by voting rights activists didn’t come to pass. Voter turnout was nowhere near this year’s early-voting states and way below Ohio’s 2016 primary, but similar to the 2012 presidential primary, which maybe isn’t that bad considering the circumstances. Efforts by the U.S. Postal Service to clear a bottleneck of mailed ballots seemed to have an effect, with tens of thousands of ballots arriving at county boards of elections on Tuesday, although it delayed the results well past midnight for larger counties.

Ohio: Primary marks a major test for mail-in voting | Joseph Marks/The Washington Post

Ohio will today hold its primary election almost entirely by mail  in what could be a model for the rest of the nation in November. The contest is a canary in the coal mine for more than a dozen states still planning presidential and state primaries this year. They’re aiming for either a fully vote-by-mail elections or for far more ballots than usual to be cast by mail. Today’s contest is also likely to guide officials as they plan for November’s presidential election, which could be similarly restricted by the novel coronavirus pandemic. Ohio aims to be a counterpoint to Wisconsin, where the Republican-led legislature blocked Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’s efforts to delay the April 7 primary contest, resulting in thousands of people not receiving absentee ballots and blocks-long lines outside polling places on Election Day. At least 40 Milwaukee residents who stood in line or worked the polls have since tested positive. The primary also takes place as New York, which has been ravaged by the coronavirus, yesterday canceled its primary. “What I saw from the outside looking in in Wisconsin looked very chaotic and candidly dangerous to me,” Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) told me. “I would not want that scenario in Ohio and I think we’ve taken the right steps to prevent it.”

Ohio: Mail-in primary tests voting during virus outbreak | Will Weisert and Julie Carr Smyth/Associated Pressa

The first major test of an almost completely vote-by-mail election during a pandemic is about to unfold in Ohio, offering lessons to other states about how to conduct one of the most basic acts of democracy amid a health crisis. The process hasn’t been smooth as state officials have navigated election laws and the need to protect citizens and poll workers from the coronavirus. Ohio’s in-person primary was delayed just hours before polls were supposed to open last month, prompting legal challenges and confusion. Tuesday’s election replacing it requires voters to run at least three pieces of mail — an application, a blank ballot and a completed one — through the U.S. Postal Service. With Joe Biden emerging as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, there’s little suspense in the results. Ohio’s vote is instead being closely watched as a case study for how to proceed with elections if the pandemic doesn’t ease. States have taken drastically different approaches, with Wisconsin proceeding with in-person voting earlier this month and New York saying Monday it would cancel its presidential primary, which was scheduled for June.

Ohio: Election may still draw thousands in person: ‘We don’t know what to expect’ | Chris Stewart/Dayton Daily News

Today’s primary election — postponed and shifted to mail-in voting because of the coronavirus pandemic — may still draw thousands of in-person voters, threatening the health of voters and elections workers. The unprecedented extension of the March primary — compounded by mail delays — has left voters confused and many potentially without ballots in hand to complete before yesterday’s postmark deadline.The result could be what officials hoped to avoid — long lines at county boards of elections, said Brian Sleeth, Warren County’s elections director.“I have to plan for one,” he said. “We’re in uncharted territory. It’s hard to tell. We have no data to compare how many people to expect tomorrow.” At least 36 people in Wisconsin tested positive for COVID-19 after reporting they voted in or worked the polls during that state’s controversial in-person election on April 7, according to news reports.

Ohio: Five states vote only by mail; should Ohio? | Laura A. Bischoff/Dayton Daily News

The coronavirus pandemic already led Ohio officials to abruptly shut down in-person voting just hours before hundreds of thousands of voters were about to cast primary ballots March 17. Could another surge of COVID- 19 cases in the fall disrupt the general election in November? Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said he’ll deliver a list of contingency options to lawmakers and the governor to consider in case the state needs to conduct a vote-by-mail election in November. LaRose said Ohio would need to have decisions on those options by late August. LaRose said he’ll again advocate for a legal change to allow absentee ballot requests be made online — rather than by mail — and a system to automatically send absentee ballot applications to all voters, provide for pre-paid postage, increase staffing at county boards of elections and reduce the total number of polling places.

Ohio: ‘More time would have been helpful’: Ohio election officials face ballot issues due to postal service delays | Meg Cunningham/ABC

Ohio, the first state to cancel its in-person voting in favor of an entirely mail-in election, has hit some hiccups as the state tries to transition voting procedures amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose, the state’s chief election official, wrote in a letter to Ohio’s Congressional delegation that due to delays with the United States Postal Service, some voters likely will not receive their requested absentee ballots in time for the Tuesday night deadline to return them. “As we approach the April 28th deadline to complete the election, we are faced with an obstacle that is outside of our control, and we need your help to overcome it. As Ohioans rush to submit their vote-by-mail requests, and our boards work overtime to fulfill them, we are finding that the delivery of the mail is taking far longer than what is published by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as expected delivery times,” LaRose wrote in his letter. “As you can imagine, these delays mean it is very possible that many Ohioans who have requested a ballot may not receive it in time,” he continued.

Ohio: Elections officials: Mail delays could result in some voters not getting ballots before April 28 primary | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

Ohio elections officials say delays with the United States Postal Service could cause some voters to not get their ballots on time send them in for next Tuesday’s vote-by-mail primary election. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said Thursday his office has received “wide reports” of first-class mail, which normally takes 1-3 days, taking as long as a week or more. That could mean delays in delivery of voters’ ballot applications, which are due Saturday, as well as in the return of ballots, which must be postmarked by Monday, or physically delivered to county boards of elections by 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in order to count. “As you can imagine, these delays mean it is very possible that many Ohioans who have requested a ballot may not receive it in time,” LaRose said in a Thursday letter to members of Ohio’s congressional delegation. (Scroll down to read the entire letter.)  The Secretary of State’s Office doesn’t know exactly how many ballots may be affected.

Ohio: Voters deluge election boards with requests for absentee ballots | Lynn Hulsey/Dayton Daily News

Ohio’s in-person primary election voting may have been canceled due to the coronavirus crisis, but with less than two weeks left to cast ballots by mail, voters across the Dayton region are inundating election boards with requests for ballots. “The amount of people voting is phenomenal,” said Jan Kelly, director of the Montgomery County Board of Elections. “We’re working sometimes seven days a week, 10 hours a day.”As of Tuesday the Montgomery County board had processed 57,000 applications for absentee ballots and mailed out 45,849 ballots, Kelly said.Across the region election officials said they believe the vote-by-mail process is challenging but voters will become more comfortable with it. They expect voters will use absentee ballots in far greater numbers in the future, even if people are once again allowed to go to the polls in November for the General Election.

Ohio: Should Ohio plan for a vote-by-mail election in November, just in case? | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

The strife over Ohio’s 2020 primary election, converted at the last minute last month to a largely vote-by-mail election over the coronavirus pandemic, has cast a new light on whether the state elections system is capable of handling an all-mail election in November if need be. Models currently project the worst of the coronavirus outbreak will recede by the summer. But past pandemics have seen a second wave break out. And with a widespread vaccine not likely to be available for more than a year, there is a distinct possibility that elections officials could be confronted with a similar scenario in November. Voter advocates, elected officials and elections workers say Gov. Mike DeWine and other leaders need to begin planning soon just in case. They want to prevent a repeat of what happened in March, when DeWine canceled Election Day, citing public health reasons, just hours before in-person voting was to have begun. The decision set off public confusion, a flurry of lawsuits and eventually, a new election plan, unanimously approved by Republican and Democratic lawmakers, that sets an effectively all-mail vote through April 28.

Ohio: Secretary of State preparing to mail vote-by-mail instructions for state’s delayed primary | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

The Ohio Secretary of State’s Office is preparing to mail nearly 8 million postcards informing voters how they can request a ballot for the state’s vote-by-mail wrap-up for its delayed primary election. The postcard, which is being sent to every registered voter in Ohio, should show up in the mail next week, according to Maggie Sheehan, a spokeswoman for Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, the state’s top elections official. It lays out the rules for Ohio’s primary election, voting for which has been extended through April 28 after state officials canceled Election Day last month due to the coronavirus pandemic. There will be no in-person voting, with narrow exceptions for the homeless and disabled. Ohioans who already have voted will get the postcards, but don’t need to vote again. The postcard includes contact information for the voter’s county board of elections — which are mailing ballot applications to those who request them — as well as a step-by-step guide on how to print off an absentee ballot application through the Secretary of State’s website, VoteOhio.gov. Voters must complete the applications and either mail or deliver them to their county board of elections to then receive an empty ballot in the mail. It also lays out how voters can hand-write an application form if they’re unable to print one off or otherwise obtain one.

Ohio: All-mail Ohio voting called challenging | David Skolnick/The Youngstown Vindicator

Election officials in Mahoning and Trumbull counties say it’s going to be challenging to have a virtually all-mail April 28 primary, but they don’t expect problems. “It will be tough,” said Stephanie Penrose, Trumbull County Board of Elections director. “Don’t get me wrong, it will be a heavy workload. But we’re going to get it done.” Thomas McCabe, deputy director of the Mahoning County Board of Elections, said: “It’s a very tight window, but we’ll make it work.” Both counties reported getting hundreds of telephone calls a day since Thursday, the day after the state Legislature voted to extend the primary from March 17 to April 28. “We’ve been getting a lot of requests for ballots and numerous calls,” Penrose said. “The Legislature’s decision has drummed up interest in the election.” Dr. Amy Acton, director of the Ohio Department of Health, canceled the March 17 in-person primary late the night before it was to be held at the request of Gov. Mike DeWine because of a public health concern about the COVID-19 pandemic. DeWine and Secretary of State Frank LaRose called for the primary to be June 2 with mail voting extended and plans for in-person voting June 2.

Ohio: Voting rights groups sue state over extended Ohio primary | Rick Rouan and Darrel Rowland/Columbus Dispatch

Voting rights advocates sued the state Monday over a new primary election plan state lawmakers adopted last week after polls were closed because of the COVID-19 outbreak. The League of Women Voters, A. Philip Randolph Institute and four individual voters filed a federal lawsuit Monday alleging the plan violates the National Voter Registration Act and the First and Fourteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Immediate action is needed from the court “to prevent the state from compounding the current public health crisis into a crisis for democracy in Ohio,” the lawsuit said. Among the remedies they are seeking is to push the completion of the election to a later date. “Under the General Assembly’s undemocratic election scheme, thousands, if not millions, of Ohioans will not get to vote through no fault of their own,” said Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, in a prepared statement.

Ohio: Groups Say New Plan for Ohio’s Primary Falls Short, Voting Should Extend Into May | Mary Kuhlman/Cleveland Scene

Civil-rights groups caution that Ohio’s new plan to address the state’s postponed primary could deprive people of their right to vote. To reduce the spread of the coronavirus, Gov. Mike DeWine closed the polls for the state’s March 17 primary. House Bill 197 was passed by the Legislature this week, extending mail voting for the primary to April 28. Mike Brickner, state director with All Voting is Local Ohio, says it’s too tight of a timeline for voters to request an absentee ballot and send it back to boards of elections. “Systems are not operating in an optimal way,” says Brickner. “Printers and mail houses and the United States Postal Service are all also reeling from COVID-19. Will there be other delays? Boards of Elections are also not operating optimally. Many have closed or are operating on very skeleton staffs.” 
Brickner and other election watchdog organizations contend the primary date should be set for no earlier than mid-May, with the voter registration deadline extended to 30 days prior as required by law.

Ohio: Former elections official: Ohio called ‘well-positioned’ to transition to an all-mail-in ballot state | Michael D. Pitman/Journal-News

The Ohio House unanimously approved a novel coronavirus bill package on Wednesday that includes formally extending absentee voting and nixing in-person voting this election cycle. And one former Ohio elections official believes the Buckeye State is set up to be the country’s fourth all-vote-by-mail state. The in-person March 17 presidential primary election was postponed to June 2, but in a March 21 letter, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose urged legislators to support a mail-in-only election for the primary. Ohio House members approved the legislation that outlines other relief efforts related to the outbreak COVID-19. The bill unanimously cleared the Ohio Senate earlier on Wednesday, and the 2020 presidential primary will be an all-absentee election. Absentee voting is now extended through April 28, and no in-person voting will be conducted, according to the bill. As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 1,700 absentee ballot request forms have been received by the Butler County Board of Elections since March 17, and that could exceed 2,000 by today. Warren County reported 1,476 ballot requests as of Wednesday.

Ohio: Lawmakers sets all-mail primary election through April 28; legal challenge still possible | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

Ohio lawmakers on Wednesday approved a plan for an all-mail primary election running through April 28, the state legislature’s fix to wrap things up after the original March 17 Election Day was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The bipartisan plan, approved unanimously by the House and Senate, would send postcards to every Ohioan with instructions on how to apply for an absentee ballot. Anyone who hasn’t cast an early ballot already would have to print off a paper application, or call their county elections and request one be mailed to them, and mail it in. Elections officials then would mail an empty ballot with a postage-paid envelope. Voters would have until April 27 to mail it back or drop it off at at a curbside county ballot box, and votes would be counted on April 28. The plan now heads to Gov. Mike DeWine, who is expected to sign it. The legislature’s plan likely would make moot a lawsuit filed by the Ohio Democratic Party in the Ohio Supreme Court. But it might not be the last legal word on the issue. A coalition of voter-rights groups said the legislature’s plan is unacceptable, saying it would disenfranchise wide swaths of voters. As the Senate was voting Wednesday, they suggested they might sue if the plan isn’t changed.

Ohio: Secretary of State proposes pre-paid, statewide mail vote for delayed primary | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose wants to send postage-paid absentee ballots to millions of Ohioans as part of his plan to complete the state’s presidential primary election, delayed over coronavirus concerns. LaRose on Saturday announced his plan, which would send postage-paid absentee ballot applications to every registered voter who hadn’t yet cast an early vote for the primary, which was postponed from March 17. Voters who complete the application would get the postage-paid ballots, which they could submit until June 2, when LaRose wants to hold in-person voting. But the plan would allow LaRose to call off in-person voting by April 24, if Ohio health officials haven’t rescinded the public-health order that closed the polls in the first place by then. LaRose’s plan, which he said is backed by Gov. Mike DeWine, would require approval and funding from state lawmakers.

Ohio: Democratic Party sues over delay of primary election | Julie Carr Smyth and Dan Sewell/Associated Press

Politicians of all stripes expressed frustration Tuesday after Ohio’s primary was postponed until June by the state’s elected officials amid concerns attendance at polling places would contribute to coronavirus pandemic. The Ohio Democratic Party sued Tuesday afternoon over Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s decision to set a new date, saying that power rests only with the Legislature. Messages were left seeking comment from LaRose, a Republican, and the state attorney general, who represents him. The state’s top health official, Dr. Amy Acton, cited the need to contain the pandemic in calling off the election hours before voters were supposed to cast ballots Tuesday morning. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine announced the decision late Monday after a judge rejected an administration-backed request that in-person voting be delayed to avoid crowding at polling places that could expose people and deter older voters. LaRose quickly ordered all county election boards to comply. Both DeWine and Acton defended the decision Tuesday afternoon, saying it was needed to save lives. Most people who contract COVID-19 have relatively mild symptoms, but it can be deadly for some, especially the elderly and those with underlying health problems. Most people infected with the virus recover in a matter of weeks.

Ohio: After unprecedented 24 hours, Ohio is first state to delay voting in presidential cycle | Liz Sklaka/Toledo Blade

Ohio elections officials and poll workers are still reeling from Gov. Mike DeWine’s last-minute order to postpone Ohio’s primary and the eleventh-hour court battle that nearly sent them scrambling to put on a statewide election in a matter of hours amid a global pandemic. Months of behind-the-scenes planning to prepare for the primary were swiftly erased by the rapidly spreading coronavirus, which is disrupting every facet of American life, including the nation’s elections. On Tuesday, Ohio became the first state to actually delay voting in the 2020 presidential cycle after the state’s health director, Dr. Amy Acton, declared a health emergency hours before polls were set to open. Four other states that were supposed to vote later this month and into April have also moved their primaries, while the other states voting Tuesday — Arizona, Florida, and Illinois — held their elections amid poll-worker shortages and concerns about turnout. In Ohio, the drama began less than 24 hours before the primary and lasted well into the early morning on Tuesday, when the Ohio Supreme Court rejected an appeal to the governor’s plan at 4 a.m., two and a half hours before polls would have opened. And it continued into Tuesday with talk of pending legal battles that resulted in the Ohio Democratic Party filing a lawsuit in Ohio Supreme Court, arguing the governor and Secretary of State Frank LaRose don’t have the power to reschedule an election. The party is requesting a primary on April 28 instead of June 2.

Ohio: Governor Mike DeWine’s coronavirus-closing order at primary polls spawns confusion | Timothy Bella/The Washington Post

The late-night decision Monday by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) to close the polls in his state due to the “unprecedented public health crisis” surrounding the coronavirus pandemic created a wave of confusion and drew criticism from voting advocates. “We have a constitutional crisis now in Ohio,” tweeted state Rep. Jon Cross, a Republican who vowed to keep the polling locations open in his district in northwest Ohio. He added, “…the Ohio Department of Health can not shut down an election.” DeWine tweeted late Monday that conducting the election on Tuesday, another key Democratic contest between former vice president Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), “would force poll workers and voters to place themselves at an unacceptable health risk of contracting coronavirus.” DeWine said Amy Acton, the state’s health director, ordered the polls to be closed on Monday. As of early Tuesday, there have been 50 confirmed cases of coronavirus and no reported deaths in Ohio.

Ohio: Primary vote halted at last minute by health officials amid coronavirus court battle | Daniel Strauss/The Guardian

Heath officials in Ohio have postponed the state’s primary vote just hours before polls were set to open, an 11th-hour decision that came after a judge denied the Governor’s request to postpone the vote because of the coronavirus. Health director Amy Acton declared a health emergency that would prevent the polls from opening out of fear of exposing voters and volunteer poll workers, many of them elderly. Arizona, Florida and Illinois were proceeding with their presidential primaries. Earlier on Monday, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine recommended that his state postpone in-person voting during Tuesday’s primary elections. DeWine said he alone did not have the authority to postpone the election, but lawyers would file a lawsuit to try to move the in-person voting date to 2 June. “We cannot conduct this election tomorrow,” DeWine said, adding that Ohioans should not be forced to make the “choice between their health and their constitutional rights and their duties as [an] American citizen”. Later on Monday, in an interview with CNN, DeWine said without drastic moves tens of thousands of pollworkers, many of them “over the age of 65” would be in places where the virus could spread.

Ohio: Governor Mike DeWine’s coronavirus response has become a national guide to the crisis | Griff Witte and Katie Zezima/The Washington Post

When Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced a ban on spectators at the Arnold Classic, a juggernaut of a sports festival that brings tens of millions in revenue, the move seemed radical. It was March 3, and the state, after all, had not even had a single confirmed case of the novel coronavirus. But within days, large-capacity events were being canceled nationwide. A week later, DeWine recommended that his state’s colleges suspend in-person classes. Across the country, they soon did. He then closed Ohio’s public schools. Other states followed. And on Sunday, DeWine ordered all restaurants and bars be shuttered. By Monday, they were turning out the lights in New York, New Jersey and Maryland, too. As a global pandemic each day transforms the unthinkable into America’s new reality, the path is being guided by an unlikely leader: the short and bespectacled 73-year-old Republican governor of America’s seventh-most-populous state. DeWine might have helped set the national agenda for responding to the coronavirus again Monday, announcing a lawsuit against his state to delay in-person voting in the primary that had been slated for Tuesday. Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Richard A. Frye rejected DeWine’s lawsuit Monday night, throwing the primary into chaos. The plaintiffs planned to immediately appeal.