By Darrel Rowland, The Columbus Dispatch
COLUMBUS – Ohio’s Golden Week is gone, and that may help Donald Trump.
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In the relatively brief history of the much-disputed week in which Ohioans could both register to vote and cast an early ballot, Democrats and minorities disproportionally took advantage of the setup.
Now the question is whether such folks will both register by the Oct. 11 deadline and cast a ballot sometime between the following day and the end of Election Day — or simply sit this one out.
“It is disappointing that partisan voting restrictions, which have been proven to disenfranchise minority voters, are being allowed to continue in Ohio,” said state Rep. Alicia Reece, D-Cincinnati, president of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus.
“It is disappointing that partisan voting restrictions, which have been proven to disenfranchise minority voters, are being allowed to continue in Ohio. This highlights just how dangerous it is to relegate our most fundamental freedom to politicians who can rig the rules for political gain in statehouses across the country. Ohioans deserve a clear set of constitutional guarantees from the state that let them access the ballot box free from politically-driven legislative hurdles every other year.” -Rep. Alicia Reece (D-Cincinnati), president of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus.
But Ohio Republican Chairman Matt Borges said, “Despite misleading rhetoric from Democrats, all Ohioans have equal opportunities to vote under the law. In fact, Ohio has one of the most generous voting schedules in the entire country.”
And, Secretary of State Jon Husted said, “This issue has been dragged through multiple court rooms over the course of several years and every time, it has been sent back with the same message: Ohio’s laws are fair and constitutional.”
The reshaped Ohio election landscape stemmed from the U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal Tuesday morning to consider Ohio Democrats’ attempt to restore Golden Week.
“This issue has been dragged through multiple court rooms over the course of several years and every time, it has been sent back with the same message: Ohio’s laws are fair and constitutional.
“This much is perfectly clear: Ohio is a place where it is easy to vote and hard to cheat. In fact, with voting now slated to begin in less than a month for the November election, Ohio is one of the easiest states in the nation in which to register and cast your ballot. Ohioans want an efficient and secure election and it is time for these wasteful lawsuits to end.” -Secretary of State Jon Husted
The one-sentence notice listed no dissenters. The appeal to stay a ruling by a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was made to Justice Elana Kagan, who referred the matter to the full high court.
Meanwhile, a federal appeals court has blocked rules requiring precise completion of thousands of absentee ballots in swing state Ohio but has upheld other challenged election law changes as legal and not unduly burdensome.
At issue were several changes on absentee and provisional ballot requirements Ohio’s Republican-led legislature passed in 2014.
The court Tuesday affirmed the ruling of a lower court rejecting absentee ballot requirements for birthdate and address entries. It disagreed other changes were burdensome or disparately affected minorities.