Gov. Kasich signs online voter registration bill into law

COLUMBUS — Eligible voters will be able to complete their registrations online starting next year, under legislation signed into law by Gov. John Kasich today.

The governor added his signature to SB 63 without comment during a private ceremony at the Statehouse. Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted, an advocate of the move, and Sen. Frank LaRose (R-Copley), who sponsored the legislation, were among the invited guests on hand.

“Today is a great day for voters as we can now move forward with implementing one of the most valuable new tools we have in our efforts to make it easier to vote and harder to cheat,” Husted said in a released statement afterward. “Online voter registration is easy for voters, effective in fighting voter fraud and less costly than paper registrations alone.”

The legislation requires Husted’s office to establish and launch the secure, online registration system in January 2017.

Under the terms of the bill, applicants will have to provide their names, addresses, birth dates, the last four digits of their Social Security numbers and their driver’s license or state identification card number to complete the process.

Eligible residents already can update their voter registration information online. Voters could still opt to register using existing paper applications.

Republican and Democratic lawmakers have pursued online voter registration in recent sessions; the final version of the legislation postpones the effective date until after the November presidential election.