Civic Register
| 10.23.17

SCOTUS Considering Ohio Purges of 'Inactive' Voters

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What’s the story?

The Supreme Court is considering a case this week concerning Ohio’s purging of what they consider to be ‘inactive’ voters. The law is meant, theoretically, to clean up the voter rolls by eliminating those who have moved or died, but it has the potential to purge many eligible voters as well. One such Ohio resident is the plaintiff in the case.

The SCOTUS decision, if found in favor of the state, could pave the way for more state laws involving strict election participation requirements.

Why does it matter?

Larry Harmon, an Ohio software engineer who has lived in the same location for over 16 years, but chose not to vote in series of elections, found when he arrived to vote in 2015 that he had been struck from the voter rolls.

The state of Ohio maintains that, per the law, Harmon was notified and asked whether he still resided at his address, but Harmon, according to the New York Times, maintains he never saw the notice:

"I don’t remember getting that, and I don’t know why they sent it in the mail. I’m out in a rural area, and sometimes I get other people’s mail. Sometimes other people get my mail."

Ohio law states that any registered voter who does not vote in any election for two years will be mailed a notice confirming their registration. Then, within four years, they must "vote in any election during the period of two federal elections subsequent to the mailing of the confirmation notice."

A call to the Franklin County Board of Elections in Columbus, OH confirmed that voting in any election, including local elections, will count towards a voter being considered ‘active’. Someone would have to not vote in any election — local, state or federal, for 6 consecutive years to be deemed ‘inactive’.

Critics of the law maintain that it is being used to disproportionately eliminate minority voters who may struggle to get to the polls due to work or transportation issues, or who may simply sit out elections due to a feeling of not being represented by the slate of candidates.

A Reuters study found that significantly more Democratic voters were purged from the rolls in Ohio than Republican voters:

"In the state’s three largest counties that include Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus, voters have been struck from the rolls in Democratic-leaning neighborhoods at roughly twice the rate as in Republican neighborhoods.”

But Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted defends the law, stating, "If this is really important thing to you in your life, voting, you probably would have done so within a six-year period."

According to Reuters, all U.S. states periodically purge their voter rolls, but only a handful, like Ohio, remove voters for not voting. They include Ohio, Indiana, Louisiana, Alabama and Oregon.

What do you think?

Should voters be purged if they don’t vote for a specified period of time? If not, how should states best verify their current address and eligibility? How long have you gone without voting at all, in any election, despite being registered? Why didn’t you vote?

Tell us in the comments what you think, then use the Take Action button to tell your reps!

— Asha Sanaker

(Photo Credit: Theresa Thompson via Flickr / Creative Commons)

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