Voting rights group asks for veto of Gavarone's bill

A voting rights group has asked Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine to veto a measure by state Sen. Theresa Gavarone, R-Bowling Green, that moves up the deadline for absentee ballots to arrive in the mail. Senate Bill 293, which has been approved by the Ohio General Assembly and sent to the governor, sets a deadline of 7:30 p.m. on Election Day for absentee ballots to be received by county election boards in order to be counted. It also requires monthly checks to ensure that voters are citizens and have not died. Under current law, ballots that were postmarked by the day before Election Day have a grace period of four days after Election Day to be counted. Senate Bill 293 keeps the four-day grace period for ballots sent from overseas and for ballots from people in the armed services. But ballots mailed by Ohio voters would have to arrive by Election Day. The Ohio Voter Rights Coalition labeled the bill "anti-voter legislation" and asked DeWine to veto it. "Hundreds of thousands of Ohio voters rely on vote-by-mail, especially rural voters, voters with disabilities or mobility issues, elderly voters and voters with limited transportation. If enacted, (Senate Bill) 293 would require that valid voted ballots postmarked before Election Day be set aside uncounted simply because of delays in the U.S. Postal Service," the group said. The Ohio Voter Rights Coalition includes the Ohio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, All Voting is Local Ohio, Common Cause Ohio, League of Women Voters Ohio and Ohio Voice. In her press release announcing passage of the bill, Gavarone said her measure protects the integrity of Ohio elections. "Unfortunately, laws on the books in Ohio were allowing the integrity of our elections to be questioned," Gavarone said. "By requiring ballots to be received and counted on Election Day and eliminating the possibility for non-citizens, dead and fictitious people and duplicate registrations to legally be counted in our elections, Ohio has furthered our national reputation as an elections leader." Gavarone also noted that her measure complies with Trump administration policy. "On March 25, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order instructing the attorney general of the U.S. to enforce Title 2, Chapter 1, Section 7 and Title 3, Chapter 1, Section 1 of the U.S. Code against states that violate these provisions by including absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day in the final tabulation of votes," the press release explains. "If you're a legal citizen of the state of Ohio, we have afforded many opportunities for votes to be cast, including absentee voting, 28 days of early voting and, of course, in-person Election Day voting," Gavarone said. "But, thanks to this bill, Ohioans can be sure that illegal voting is stymied in this state, and that election results will be known promptly and accurately on Election Day." The final version of the bill passed the Senate 23-10 on Nov. 19, largely along party lines, with Gavarone, state Sen. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville, and state Sen. Bill Reineke, R-Tiffin, all voting in favor. The House passed the final version of the bill 61-30 on Nov. 19. Local lawmakers who voted for it included state Rep. D.J. Swearingen, R-Huron; state Rep. Kellie Deeter, R-Norwalk, and state Rep. Gary Click, R-Vickery.