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High court postpones early voting in Ohio
By Marc Kovac
COLUMBUS
A divided U.S. Supreme Court sided with Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted on Monday, blocking the start of early voting until next week.
The 5-4 decision means Ohio’s in-person absentee period will start Oct. 7, not today as planned.
Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Anthony Alito Jr. — all nominated for the high court by Republican presidents — voted in favor of the stay.
Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — all nominated by Democratic presidents — voted against it.
Husted said in a released statement that the “ruling validates what I have long said: Elections in Ohio should be run by the same rules in every county and Ohioans should have the right to make those rules through their elected representatives.”
Dale Ho, director of the American Civil Liberty Union’s Voting Right Project, said in a released statement that the decision “will deprive many Ohioans of the opportunity to vote in the upcoming election as this case continues to make its way through the courts.”
The Lawsuit
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, several churches with predominantly black congregations and other groups filed suit in May, saying an elimination of the first week of early voting and a lack of Sunday and evening voting would make it harder for minority voters to cast ballots.
Husted and the attorney general’s office countered that Ohio has more early voting opportunities than many other states and that any eligible Ohioan can complete a mail-in ballot at any time of day during the state’s absentee period. They also argued that requiring longer hours and additional days for early in-person voting would create a cost burden for already-strapped county offices.
Federal Judge Peter Economus and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the NAACP in the suit and ordered the secretary of state to start early voting earlier and offer more evening and Sunday opportunities to cast ballots.
But Husted and Republican Attorney General Mike DeWine appealed the decision, seeking a stay from the U.S. Supreme Court and saying the federal courts had overstepped their authority.
Earlier this month, Husted directed county elections officials to open early in-person polls today, with additional evening and Sunday hours included through the Nov. 4 general election.
After the U.S. Supreme Court’s stay Monday, Husted rescinded that directive, replacing it with a schedule he released earlier that includes early voting on mostly weekdays during business hours, with two Saturdays and one Sunday included.
Reaction
Dan Tierney, a spokesman for DeWine, said in a released statement, “This was an important ruling for protecting all Ohioans’ rights through their elected representatives to determine the state’s voting schedule rather than have the federal courts determine that schedule for them.”
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th, said, “I am utterly outraged by this decision. We know early voting and the Golden Week increases voter turnout and gives more citizens a chance to have their voices heard.”
Golden Week, which was to start today, would allow people to register and vote at the same time for a week.
“I’d prefer to have the week back, but I have to follow the law and the law is early voting won’t start” today, said Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairman David Betras, who also serves as vice chairman of the county board of elections.
But county Republican Vice Chairwoman Tracey Winbush, a board of elections member, said the decision is the right one.
“People have a long time to register, and to be able to register and vote at the same time doesn’t give boards of elections enough time to verify a person’s address,” she said. “It’s not fair. We need time to verify, and this will give boards enough time.”