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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio’s rules for counting mail-in ballots could change before next year’s midterm elections. A pair of Republican state senators wants to eliminate the grace period that allows ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive up to four days late. They say Senate Bill 293 is needed to comply with federal law ahead of a possible U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Democrats argue it’s part of a broader effort by President Donald Trump and national Republicans to discourage mail-in voting. The bill is scheduled for a hearing Tuesday afternoon, but the debate stems from a federal court case decided last October. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Mississippi can’t count mail-in ballots arriving after Election Day, even if they’re postmarked on time. In the court’s words, “Text, precedent, and historical practice confirm this ‘day for the election’ is the day by which ballots must be both cast by voters and received by state officials.” Mississippi’s law allowing ballots to arrive up to five days late was therefore preempted by federal law. “This is not simply a Republican initiative or concern,” said Sen. Theresa Gavarone, a Wood County Republican. “Minnesota, a reliably blue state, passed legislation to comply with federal law.” Utah, Kansas and North Dakota did the same, but Ohio Democrats aren’t convinced the state needs to act now. Columbus Democratic Sen. Bill DeMora pointed out that Ohio is under the jurisdiction of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. And the U.S. Supreme Court hasn’t weighed in on it yet. “How many cases of voter fraud occur from having absentee ballots turned in after the deadline?” DeMora said. Ohio counted about 9,500 late absentee ballots in November 2024, according to data from the Secretary of State’s website. That’s 0.86% of the 1 million mail-in ballots cast in that election and 0.17% of Ohio’s overall votes. Since Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose took office in 2019, his office has sent more than 600 potential cases of voter fraud to county prosecutors. Many involved noncitizens who struggle with English and appeared to have registered by mistake while getting a driver’s license. As of September 2024, only 12 referrals resulted in criminal charges. The push to tighten ballot deadlines may be about more than legal compliance. Ohio’s grace period drew little controversy until Trump made opposition to mail-in voting a theme of his 2020 campaign. “Some people seem to have the opinion that a little bit of voter fraud is fine or just the cost of doing business,” Gavarone said. “Not me.” She and her cosponsor, Sen. Andrew Brenner, from Delaware County, said absentee ballots are less secure than in-person voting. “More time waiting equals more time to commit a crime,” Brenner said. Removing the grace period, in his opinion, would give voters “confidence that there won’t be a rush of phony ballots shoved in to skew the results.”
