It’s time to send in ballot request
Don’t wait to ask for mail-in ballot
Voters who want to cast ballots by mail in the 2020 general election would do well to get their requests in by Tuesday.
Yes, the official deadline in Ohio law doesn’t come until the Saturday before the election – Oct. 31 this year. But high volumes of absentee ballots brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic could strain the U.S. Postal Service and make it difficult to get your ballot back quickly enough to return it before the deadline.
Elections officials and voting rights advocates agree that, while the law gives more time, voters should act early to ensure ballots arrive in time to be postmarked before Election Day, on Nov. 3.
Even the U.S. Postal Service has warned that Ohio’s deadline to ask for an absentee ballot is too late to assure they will arrive in voters’ mailboxes on time. In a July 30 letter to Ohio Secretary of State Frank Larose, the postal service said there is “significant risk” that ballots requested at or near the deadline would not arrive in time to be
counted.
In absentee ballot requests sent to all 8 million registered voters in Ohio, LaRose urged them to get their request in by Oct. 27. Larose’s office said it has received assurances from the Postal Service that it will use additional protocols to ensure timely election mail delivery. A spokeswoman for the secretary of state said the breakneck pace of absentee ballots arriving at local boards of elections indicates the mail is indeed moving swiftly so far.
“We don’t want anyone to wait until the last minute,” said Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio.
As Ohioans determine how they will cast their ballots in the general election, here is some helpful information about voting by mail:
Do I need a reason to vote by mail? No. Ohio is one of 29 states that offer
“no excuse” absentee voting. That means all registered voters can request an absentee ballot to vote by mail, and they don’t need a reason.
When is the legal request deadline?
Ohio law prescribes noon on the Saturday before the election as the legal deadline to request an absentee ballot, but that gives only three days for the board of elections to process the application and mail the ballot; for voters to receive the ballot in the mail, vote it and mail it back; and for the postal service to deliver it. Larose asked state lawmakers to move up the deadline to an earlier date, but the Ohio General Assembly declined.
How do I request a ballot?
Larose sent absentee ballot requests to every registered voter in the state, but you also can request one from your local board of elections or print one at Voteohio.gov. If you don’t have a printer, boards of elections are supposed to also accept hand-written applications that contain the same information as the form. Voteohio.gov also has instructions for how to track your ballot online.
When do I have to send my ballot back to the board of elections?
For an absentee ballot to count, it must be postmarked before Election Day – by Nov. 2, in other words. If you’re close to the deadline, make sure your ballot actually gets a postmark. It also must arrive at the board of elections within 10 days of the election. Ballots that arrive after that window won’t count.
I’d like to vote absentee, but I’m worried about slow mail delivery. Is there any other way I can deliver my ballot?
Yes. Mailing your absentee ballot is one of three ways you can vote early in Ohio. You also can drop it yourself in a drop box at the county board of elections through Election Day. Or you can go to the county’s early voting center to vote early in-person, which also is considered an absentee vote. In Franklin County, the Board of Elections is at 1700 Morse Road in Columbus.
Can I still vote in person if I requested an absentee ballot?
Yes. If you requested an absentee ballot but want to vote in-person, you still can go to your county’s early voting center to cast a “regular” ballot. Boards of elections have safeguards in place to ensure no voter’s ballots will count twice. If you choose to vote in person on Election Day, your precinct polling place will require you to cast a provisional ballot that will be counted later only if you also did not submit the requested absentee ballot.
If I vote absentee, when will my vote be counted?
Any absentee ballot received on or before Election Day will be among the first ballots counted in Ohio. After the polls close at 7:30 p.m., the earliest results released in each county will be for voters who either voted early in person, by mail or by dropping off their absentee ballot at the board of elections. In-person Election Day votes will be added to those totals throughout the night. rrouan@dispatch.com @Rickrouan