Governor Kasich Vetoes Restrictive Voting Law
On June 17th, Gov. Kasich vetoed a bill that would have placed a modern-day poll tax on voters. Senate Bill 296 would have required voters who sought to extend voting hours to post bond equal to the estimated cost of keeping the polls open. If courts decided against keeping the polls open, the voter would lose the bond.
Gov. Kasich said that while Ohio does need a uniform law regarding polling hours, this bill went too far with its bond requirement. Secretary of State Husted agreed.
The bond could have been up to tens of thousands of dollars, which is something that many voters, and especially minority, poor, and elderly voters, would not be able to afford. Voting emergencies happen, such as technological issues or extreme traffic, which may mean that polling places need to extend their hours. Voters should not have to pay to exercise their right to vote in such circumstances, and thankfully for the 2016 elections they will not have to.
Find other coverage of this story here:
http://www.toledoblade.com/State/2016/06/17/Kasich-vetoes-bill-on-court-rules-for-expanded-voting-hours.html
http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2016/06/election_bill_vetoed_by_gov_jo.html
by Megan Shanklin