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Akron Beacon Journal
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
COLUMBUS - Ohio would join 24 other states in allowing citizens to cast absentee ballots without having to provide a reason should voters agree to amend Ohio’s Constitution by passing Issue 2 on Nov. 8.
In the states that have loosened restrictions on absentee balloting, there has been no evidence of a significant increase in voter fraud -- a charge that critics of Issue 2 have made.
Issue 2 is the first -- and least controversial -- of four amendments that Reform Ohio Now, a group closely aligned with Democratic lawmakers, organizations and unions, worked to place before voters this fall.
Sometimes called “no-excuse’’ or “no-fault’’ absentee voting, the amendment would allow anyone in Ohio to vote by mail beginning 35 days before the election.
Under current Ohio law, absentee voters first must declare they have a valid reason -- such as being elderly, disabled or on active military duty.
The county board of elections would be responsible for providing voters with pre-addressed, postage-paid envelopes. The ballots would have to be postmarked by Election Day.
Voters who request absentee ballots but do not receive them in time would be permitted to cast a provisional ballot on Election Day.
The provisional ballot would not be counted if the voter’s absentee ballot arrives within 10 days of the election.
In an argument for Issue 2 prepared by Herb Asher, an Ohio State University professor emeritus, and Ron Alexander, a state union leader, Reform Ohio Now says voting would be easier and more convenient.
Asher and Alexander tout the idea as a way to restore confidence and bring an end to corruption in state government, arguing that increased voter turnout would force officials to be more accountable.
They point to the long lines on Election Day in recent years, poor weather and work demands as discouraging citizens from voting.
Opposition to the amendment was authored by state Sen. Jeff Jacobson, R-Vandalia, state Rep. Kevin DeWine, R-Fairborn, and former Senate president-turned-lobbyist Dick Finan for Ohio First, a political action committee backed primarily by Republicans.
They say the amendment “is likely to lead to a significant increase in cases of fraudulent voting in Ohio, as experienced in other states that have adopted similar proposals.’’
The amendment does not protect the integrity of votes nor ensure that only eligible voters cast ballots, they said. Also, Ohio already has 16 exemptions for absentee voting while the amendment does not establish statewide standards for absentee voting. “It doesn’t belong in the constitution,’’ DeWine said.
Placing requirements in the constitution may limit the authority of the legislature and county elections boards. If there are problems with the amendment, “the only way to fix it is with another constitutional amendment,’’ DeWine said.
“I’m a fan of no-fault absentee voting, but you have to make sure you can effectively manage the potential for fraud,’’ he said.
He’s also concerned that -- under the proposal -- county boards have the option to open satellite voting centers. If one county opens more centers than another, someone could charge he or she has been disenfranchised.
The problems DeWine describes have not occurred in other states with no-fault absentee voting, according to the National Association of Secretaries of States, an organization made up of each state’s top elections official.
Oregon is example No state in the country relies more on voters casting ballots by mail than Oregon. The state did away with voting booths, precincts and poll workers five years ago.
Anne E. Martens, communications chief for Oregon’s secretary of state, said her state initiated a system of voting entirely by mail for local elections in 1981 and expanded to state and federal elections in 2000.
“It has been very popular. People love it,’’ Martens said, citing a recent University of Oregon study that found 81 percent of Oregonians prefer vote-by-mail to other methods.
Martens said voters receive a ballot two weeks before an election and can mail them back or drop them at numerous sites in the counties. She said there has been no voter fraud.
“That is a knee-jerk reaction whenever anybody talks about voting by mail,’’ she said. Martens said Oregon’s system is more reliable because the ballots are taken to one of 36 county clerk’s offices to be opened and counted.
Elections are cheaper and there are no problems with finding trained people to work at the polls, she said.
“We haven’t seen any type of widespread fraud. It’s been a reliable and responsible system,’’ Martens said.
She said Oregon had the third-highest voter turnout among states for the 2004 presidential election, but even more interesting, she said, is that turnout for so-called low-interest elections in off-years has increased by 10 percent.
In Massachusetts, a proposal is in the works to expand absentee-balloting rules to make them nearly identical to the Reform Ohio Now plan. Legislative leaders there support the idea, said Madhu Sridhar, president of the Massachusetts League of Women Voters.
She said the league approached committee chairs in the House and Senate about the expansion, and both agreed to be co-sponsors of a constitutional amendment, which will be addressed in a constitutional convention next spring.
Large voter turnout is the sign of a healthy democracy, she said. “Isn’t that what we want?’’ Sridhar said the league has looked for evidence of fraud in states that have open absentee balloting and have found none. “There is nothing that clearly associates voter fraud with absentee voting,’’ she said. “Concerns for fraud should not be an excuse for raising barriers against qualified voters.’’
Different approach Minnesota has a system similar to Ohio’s, but the state has a much different approach to absentee voting. It actively promotes the idea and pushes voters to use a catchall in the law that allows absentee voting by anyone who is out of his or her precinct on Election Day.
Kent Kaiser, communications director for the Minnesota secretary of state, said 5 to 8 percent of the voters use absentee ballots; in 2004 Minnesota recorded its highest total.
“Part of the reason is we promoted the idea heavily,’’ Kaiser said. Minnesota runs public service announcements geared toward business people, students and even hunters.
Yes, hunters. Deer season often commences the weekend before the fall elections, Kaiser said.
“We even say, `If you think you’re going to be gone on Election Day, you should vote by absentee ballot,’ ‘‘ Kaiser said.
There have been no complaints, no long lines and no voter fraud, Kaiser said.
A new strategy Despite the initial rhetoric about voter fraud, Republican lawmakers appear to have a new strategy to derail Issue 2.
On Friday, Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland, said lawmakers would pass legislation before the election to allow “no-fault absentee voting’’ in Ohio.
“I strongly support giving Ohio voters more flexibility that will encourage increased participation in our elections system and promote shorter lines at the polls; but we have a responsibility to take precautions that will ensure the flexibility is not abused and that our elections are not compromised,’’ Harris said.
Democratic leaders in the House and Senate denounced the idea as a trick.
Steve Fought, a spokesman for Reform Ohio Now, questioned why Republican lawmakers suddenly are switching their position on absentee ballots.
Fought said his group will continue to push for the change to be placed in the Ohio Constitution so lawmakers cannot conveniently undo their law after the election.
“They can’t be trusted,’’ he said. | |||||||||||||||
