Ohio GOP protests Brunner’s ruling

COLUMBUS (AP) — Ohio Republicans on Friday challenged the state’s top elections official, a Democrat, with allegations of power abuse and filed a lawsuit over a separate calendar glitch. Democrats countered that Republicans were trying to suppress the vote.

Republican Sen. John McCain’s campaign helped thousands of people request absentee ballots, but Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner said many of them forgot to check a box attesting they were registered voters. Republicans protested, claiming Brunner was using her office to benefit her Democratic Party.

On Friday, Brunner offered a fix to the McCain-enlisted voters: Go on the Internet, print a form and mail it back.

“If they would have simply left the check-box off, they would have avoided all these problems and we wouldn’t be here today,” Brunner said.

Ohio Republicans and McCain’s top campaign official in the state objected.

“There is no reason to reject a form that includes all necessary legal requirements,” said Jon Seaton, McCain’s top aide in the region. “Our position has not changed — qualified electors who request an absentee ballot should not be disenfranchised.”

Ohio Republican Chairman Bob Bennett said Brunner was adding “another layer of bureaucracy to complicate the process even more” with the online handling.

With the state shaping up to be a central venue in the heated presidential campaign, every vote is crucial to the campaign of both McCain and Democratic rival Barack Obama. President Bush won his re-election bid by winning Ohio narrowly — only 10 votes per precinct gave him a win over Sen. John Kerry.