GOP trying to scare new voters, Strickland, other Dems say
A Republican fundraiser has filed a new suit against Ohio’s secretary of state.
COLUMBUS (AP) — Ohio Republicans are trying to scare newly registered voters by filing lawsuits that question their eligibility, the state’s Democratic governor said Monday.
Gov. Ted Strickland also accused the GOP of trying to distract voters from real issues.
“In the last few days the Republicans have tried to instill fear in Ohio voters about whether their registrations to vote will be challenged and whether they will be able to cast a ballot,” Strickland said at a news conference with other Democratic leaders, include U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown and Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman.
“We condemn these attacks which we find despicable. Ohioans deserve better than what they are getting from John McCain and the Republican Party,” Strickland said.
The GOP has filed numerous legal challenges questioning the status of about 200,000 newly registered voters in Ohio, warning about the potential for voter fraud.
Republican fundraiser David Myhal has sued Democratic Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner in the Ohio Supreme Court, arguing that Brunner is violating the law by not providing counties with the names of newly registered voters whose driver’s license numbers or Social Security numbers don’t match records in other government databases.
The filing came Friday, hours after the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Brunner. The high court said the state GOP didn’t have standing to bring the case.
In a separate move, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters, who also serves as McCain’s southwest Ohio campaign chairman, issued a subpoena for personal information on roughly 40 percent of the 671 voters who registered and cast a ballot on the same day during a weeklong period earlier this month.
Deters removed himself from the investigation Monday after Democrats raised questions about his impartiality. A Hamilton County judge appointed Mike O’Neill, a former assistant county prosecutor, as a special prosecutor to head the investigation.
“It’s clear Republicans are using a systematic and coordinated effort of frivolous lawsuits and official government positions to scare Ohioans and suppress voters,” Brown said.
Ohio Republicans said Strickland failed to act like a statesman with his remarks Monday.
“The governor had a chance to be a statesman in this debate and work toward common ground in addressing the concerns of everyone involved, but he can’t tear himself away from the worn-out Democrat talking points that have about as much validity as an ACORN registration,” said Ohio GOP Deputy Chairman Kevin DeWine, referring to the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, which is under investigation for voter registration fraud in several states.
About 200,000 of 666,000 voters who have registered in Ohio since Jan. 1 have records that don’t match. Brunner has said the discrepancies most likely stem from innocent clerical errors rather than fraud, but she has set up a verification plan.
Brunner has said plenty of checks and balances exists within the bipartisan county boards of elections to catch potential fraud. She said federal law does not specify what should be done if data doesn’t match, and has said the mismatches were never intended to be grounds for challenging voters.
It’s unclear when the Ohio Supreme Court will issue a ruling. U.S. District Court Judge George Smith on Monday denied a request by Brunner to take the case from the state Supreme Court. Brunner had argued that the case primarily involves the Help America Vote Act, a federal law, and not state law.
Justices Maureen O’Connor and Evelyn Lundberg Stratton have removed themselves from the case, as they have in other cases involving election matters. Both are seeking re-election on the Nov. 4 ballot.
They will be replaced by appeals court judges Lynn Slaby, a Republican, and William Wolff Jr., a Democrat. Barring further changes, the case will be decided by six Republican justices and one Democrat. The court typically consists of all Republicans.
Justices don’t usually provide a reason when removing themselves.