by J.D. Davidson
More Ohioans have requested absentee ballots and voted early in-person as of the close of business Tuesday than at the same point in the state’s 2018 gubernatorial election, Secretary of State Frank LaRose announced.
“While not a significant increase over the same point in the 2018 election, Ohioans are showing confidence in Ohio’s abundant early voting opportunities,” said LaRose. “Our bipartisan boards of elections have done an incredible job making their early voting centers ready, and lines are short for anyone who wants to make sure their voice is heard.” While combined the number of ballot requests and in-person early voting totals pass the 2018 total 21 days before the election, the jump comes from in-person early voting.
Combined, 943,105 voters have cast either in-person or requested an absentee ballot for the November election, representing a more than 25,000 increase over 2018. However, more than 5,000 fewer Ohioans have asked for an absentee ballot.
At the same time, more than 30,000 more voters have voted in-person at this time compared with 2018.
Over the course of the early voting period, there is nearly 200 hours of early voting opportunities for the 2022 general election. Ohio is one of 19 states that allows voting on a Saturday and one of just six states that allows early voting on a Sunday. Ohio’s early voting period is 21% longer than the national average, according to LaRose.
Also, a review by the Brookings Institute showed Ohio as the top state when it comes to absentee voting systems when compared to the other 42 states that operate traditional absentee voting systems.
Absentee voters in Ohio have voter identification and their signature checked twice during the process, and ballot harvesting is illegal in the state. Voters can also track their ballot on the voteohio.gove/track website.
– – –
An Ohio native, J.D. Davidson is a veteran journalist with more than 30 years of experience in newspapers in Ohio, Georgia, Alabama and Texas. He has served as a reporter, editor, managing editor and publisher. Davidson is a regional editor for The Center Square.
Photo “Election Day” by Phil Roeder. CC BY2.0.
