Current:Home > MarketsOhio attorney general rejects voting-rights coalition’s ballot petition for a 2nd time -FutureWise Finance
Ohio attorney general rejects voting-rights coalition’s ballot petition for a 2nd time
View
Date:2025-04-14 11:47:03
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A coalition of voting-rights groups is vowing to fight on after Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost issued his second rejection Thursday of petition language it has submitted for a proposed constitutional amendment.
Yost found the amendment’s title — “Ohio Voters Bill of Rights” — was “highly misleading and misrepresentative” of the measure’s contents, even as he acknowledged that his office had previously certified identical language. It certified a Nursing Facility Patients’ Bill of Rights in 2021 and another Ohio Voters Bill of Rights in 2014.
The Ohio Voters Bill of Rights calls for enshrining the right for all Ohioans to vote safely and securely in the state constitution. The proposed amendment includes automatic voter registration, same-day voter registration and expanded early voting options and locations.
The push for the amendment follows Ohio’s enactment last year of sweeping new election restrictions, including a strict photo ID requirement and shortened windows after Election Day for returning and curing ballots.
“In the past, this Office has not always rigorously evaluated whether the title fairly or truthfully summarized a given proposed amendment,” Yost wrote the coalition’s attorney. “But recent authority from the Ohio Supreme Court has confirmed that the title for a ballot initiative is material to voters.”
That authority emerged from a legal dispute last year over the title that appeared on petitions for a local drag ban, according to Yost. His tougher stance also follows Republican legislators’ failed efforts last summer to making amending Ohio’s constitution more difficult.
Members of the voting rights coalition — which includes the NAACP’s Ohio chapter, the Ohio Unity Coalition, the A. Philip Randolph Institute and the Ohio Organizing Collaborative — said in a statement that they were dismayed by Yost’s decision. They said he had rejected their revised language “despite our dutiful compliance with his previous objections.”
“Voting is our most fundamental American right that each and every one of us wants and deserves to exercise,” the group said. “The Attorney General has shown a repeated lack of support for this popular amendment that will guarantee an equal path to the ballot box for all Ohioans.”
In his letter, Yost said, “Indeed, in our time of heightened polarization and partisanship, whether the title of a proposed amendment fairly or truthfully summarizes the proposal takes on even greater importance to voters asked to sign a petition. Thus, while examples of past practice from this Office may be relevant ... they cannot be dispositive because they did not undertake to determine whether the title itself is a ‘fair and truthful statement.’”
veryGood! (216)
Related
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- FBI raids homes in Oakland, California, including one belonging to the city’s mayor
- Starting Pilates? Here’s Everything You’ll Need To Crush Your Workout at Home or in the Studio
- Texas court finds Kerry Max Cook innocent of 1977 murder, ending decades-long quest for exoneration
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- Kylie Jenner Breaks Down in Tears Over Nasty Criticism of Her Looks
- Ben Affleck Recounts F--king Bananas Fan Encounter With Wife Jennifer Lopez and Their Kids
- Biden administration old growth forest proposal doesn’t ban logging, but still angers industry
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- How to change Siri and Alexa's voice: Switch up how your Google assistant talks
Ranking
- A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
- Sabrina Carpenter announces Short n' Sweet North American tour: How to get tickets
- Authorities arrest Alabama man wanted in connection with multiple homicides
- NCAA presents options to expand March Madness tournaments from current 68 teams, AP source says
- Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie return for an 'Encore,' reminisce about 'The Simple Life'
- California firefighters gain on blazes but brace for troublesome hot weather
- Climate change made spring's heat wave 35 times more likely — and hotter, study shows
- MLB game at Rickwood Field has 'spiritual component' after Willie Mays' death
Recommendation
A White House order claims to end 'censorship.' What does that mean?
Texas electricity demand could nearly double in six years, grid operator predicts
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fails to qualify for presidential debate with Biden, Trump
Should I go into debt to fix up my home? High interest rates put owners in a bind
US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy announces he 'beat' cancer
Donald Sutherland, the towering actor whose career spanned ‘M.A.S.H.’ to ‘Hunger Games,’ dies at 88
Ben Affleck Recounts F--king Bananas Fan Encounter With Wife Jennifer Lopez and Their Kids