Stopping the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio has prompted many novel decisions on the part of state officials, including changing the date and altering some of the typical processes for the Ohio Primary Election.
On March 17 — the original slated date for the Ohio primary — Ohio Department of Health Director Amy Acton ordered the polls to close just eight hours before voting was to begin, citing the department's powers under the Ohio Revised Code to prevent the spread of disease and fear of the virus' quickly escalating growth.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said that new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention against gatherings of more than 50 people made safe in-person voting impossible and argued that leaving polls open would make those at high risk of serious illness from the virus choose between their democratic rights and their health.
DeWine's initial proposal was to have absentee voting until June 2, followed by in-person voting that day. But the Ohio General Assembly has decided instead that Ohioans will have until April 28 to vote via absentee ballot in the primary.
For a vote to count in the Ohio primary, mail-in ballots must be dropped off at local boards of election by 7:30 p.m. April 28 or postmarked by April 27 and received by May 8. Votes that have already been cast will count. A small group of voters — those with disabilities and those experiencing homelessness — will be permitted to vote in person.
Under the new law passed unanimously through the state House and Senate, every voter in the state will get a postcard giving instructions on how to obtain an absentee ballot and the deadlines for voting. They would then have to print off or request from their county board of elections an application, after which the state would mail them a ballot and a postage-paid envelope.
The Hamilton County Board of Elections (BOE) has sent out an email explaining the mail-in voting process. They say, "You must submit an absentee vote-by mail application to receive a ballot in the mail." And only voters who have not already cast a ballot in this year's primary may request one.
To obtain an absentee Vote by Mail application:
- Visit the Hamilton County BOE website (votehamiltoncountyohio.gov) or call 513-632-7000 to have an application mailed to you. There is also a self-serve station in the vestibule of the board office at 4700 Smith Road in Norwood where you can fill out an application. The vestibule is open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday and has Vote by Mail Applications and Voter Registration Forms.
- Applications must be received by the BOE by noon April 25.
- You can mail the applications to the BOE or drop them off in the 24-hour drive-up drop box at the BOE office.
How to submit an absentee Vote by Mail Ballot:
- Ballots will be delivered via mail starting March 30.
- Ballots must be returned to the BOE by 7:30 p.m. April 28.
- If your ballot is postmarked by April 27 and received by May 8, it will be added to the Official Count.
- You can mail your ballot to the BOE (4700 Smith Road, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45212) or drop it off at their secure 24-hour drive-up drop box.
Only these people qualify to vote in person:
- According to the BOE, only those with a qualifying disability or voters who cannot receive mail can vote in person. In-person voting will take place at the BOE office in Norwood from 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. on April 28.
- If you have a qualifying disability, you may also chose to vote by mail — you are not required to vote in person.
The BOE says, "The Absentee Voter List on our website is now updated to include voters who are requesting ballots during the extended voting period. We began entering those requests on March 24, 2020. Ballots will be mailed beginning March 30." (You can also check your voter registration here).
Find more info at VoteHamiltonCountyOhio.gov.
