Ohio
Voter Protections Newsletter Volume 6 Issue 4
September 2, 2010
In Ohio, Advancement Project is working with Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to reduce the number of provisional ballots cast by registered voters that are rejected for a variety of reasons. Secretary Brunner recently issued a directive affirming that provisional ballots cast in the wrong precinct or incomplete provisional ballots will no longer be automatically rejected. Now, under the directive, provisional ballots cast in the correct polling place will be counted provided that evidence of any deficiency or error is attributable to poll workers’ failure to follow Ohio law.
The directive was required by a consent decree, which concluded a 2006 lawsuit (NEOCH v. Brunner) alleging unequal treatment of provisional ballots, especially those cast by homeless persons. Ohio law requires voters to present identification before casting a regular ballot, but homeless voters are substantially less likely to have acceptable forms of identification because Ohio does not provide free ID cards and most other acceptable forms of identification must have the voter’s current address. As a result, homeless voters who do not have proper identification are required to cast a provisional ballot, a type of ballot that carries the risk of being rejected.
The consent decree provides a few important remedies. It declares that provisional ballots will not be rejected simply because the voter did not provide his or her date of birth. Additionally, if the voter does not properly complete his or her provisional ballot or forgets to sign it for reasons attributable to poll worker error, the voter’s ballot may not be rejected. Finally, if a poll worker fails to properly complete his or her section of the provisional ballot or fails to sign it, the ballot may not be rejected.
The decree also reiterates important provisions of existing law that protect voters who do not have acceptable forms of voter ID. In particular, the decree maintains that any voter who provides the last four digits of his or her Social Security number must be given the opportunity to cast a provisional ballot without having to show a poll worker his or her Social Security card.
In Ohio’s most populous counties, many polling places house multiple precincts, sometimes confusing voters and poll workers alike. Occasionally, poll workers direct voters to the incorrect precinct, or fail to notice that the voter is attempting to vote in the incorrect precinct. Before the directive, any provisional ballot cast in the wrong precinct was automatically rejected. But, Secretary Brunner’s directive affirms that any “provisional ballot cast in the wrong precinct, but correct polling place,” by a voter who uses the last four digits of his or her social security number for identification will not be rejected if the precinct mix-up is “attributable to poll worker error.”
Though Secretary Brunner’s directive is a clear step in the right direction, the directive does not define poll worker error or provide any examples to local boards of elections of poll worker error. Advancement Project is concerned that, in the absence of clear directives, local election officials may define poll worker error very inconsistently and narrowly, such that hardly any provisional ballot deficiencies will be deemed to be “attributable to poll worker error”—causing the number of rejected provisional ballots to remain high.
Advancement Project has written to Secretary Brunner asking her to issue a supplemental directive or advisory that gives illustrative examples of what constitutes poll worker error and permits the counting of all provisional ballots cast in the wrong precinct, unless the evidence clearly indicates that the voter refused to go to the correct precinct after being advised by the poll worker to do so. Because the voter must supply his or her current address during the provisional ballot application process, a poll worker should easily be able to discern whether the voter is in the correct precinct. If the poll worker checks the address on a voter’s provisional ballot application but does not direct the voter to the correct precinct that should constitute evidence of poll worker error.
In addition to providing examples of poll worker error, Advancement Project has also recommended that Secretary Brunner revise the current poll worker provisional ballot statement, to guide the poll worker through the required steps of verifying the accuracy and completeness of the application and verifying whether the voter is in the correct precinct.
Secretary Brunner’s directive should protect many registered voters who are forced to cast provisional ballots, but a supplemental directive or advisory would ensure identical statewide implementation and equal protection for all.
