Voting bill vetoed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich

By Jackie Borchardt, cleveland.com
on June 17, 2016 at 11:06 AM, updated June 17, 2016 at 2:37 PM

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Gov. John Kasich on Friday vetoed a bill that critics said would have imposed a poll tax on voters seeking to keep polling places open due to emergencies.

The bill would have required voters seeking an extension for voting hours in county courts to post bond equal to the estimated cost of keeping polling places open, which could total tens of thousands of dollars. If the court decided against keeping the polls open, the voter would lose the bond.

GOP lawmakers said the requirement and others in the bill were needed after cases in which Southwest Ohio judges kept the polls open, in their opinion, unnecessarily.

Kasich, in his veto message, agreed there is a need to create a uniform process for county common pleas judges considering such requests. But he said the provision that eliminated a judge's discretion to waive the bond went too far.

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Poll-hours bill draws veto from governor

Proposal demanded bond for injunctions

ByJim Provance | BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF Published on June 18, 2016

COLUMBUS — With just the second veto of his administration, Gov. John Kasich on Friday killed a bill passed by fellow Republicans that Democrats claimed would have amounted to a poll tax on voters.

Senate Bill 296 would have required voters who seek a court injunction to keep the polls open longer on Election Day to post bond to cover the additional costs should that ruling later be overturned on appeal.

Republicans argued the bill was necessary in the wake of recent federal and state court orders in Hamilton County that kept polling places open after normal hours.

The judges ordered the extensions in the November general election because of problems with new electronic poll books and in this year’s March primary because of an accident that snarled traffic.

While generally agreeing with the motives behind the bill, Mr. Kasich said allowing state judges to waive the bonding requirement only in certain cases could discourage a voter from seeking an injunction when there is a valid reason to extend hours.

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