(WKBN) – On the heels of a Supreme Court ruling last week that granted a request from Republican leaders in Arizona to reinstate a state law that requires proof of citizenship to register to vote, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is calling on Ohio’s legislature to do the same.
LaRose sent a letter late last week to leaders of the Ohio Senate and House of Representatives asking lawmakers to enact legislation that would give his office the authority to require proof of citizenship on state-issued voter registration forms.
Currently, state law does not allow the Secretary of State to require proof of citizenship.
“This is common sense, and it’s also the law,” LaRose said. “Despite roadblocks and lack of support from the federal government, Ohio has led the way in removing noncitizens from the voter rolls and referring those who violate the law to prosecutors,” LaRose said.
LaRose said the recent Supreme Court ruling involving Arizona paves the way for the “front-end verification” in Ohio.
“This would be a great step forward for future elections,” LaRose said.
LaRose referred for prosecution this month 597 apparent noncitizens who either registered to vote or cast a ballot in a recent election — a higher number than normal but still a tiny fraction of the state’s electorate.
Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose said that of those cases, 138 were found to have cast ballots and 459 registered but did not vote. They were identified as part of a routine review and referred to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
Early voting for the November General Election begins Oct. 8. Voters can cast ballots at county boards of elections most days leading up to the weekend before Election Day, so long as they come with photo identification.
Ohio requires in-person voters to have photo identification in order to vote. That includes an Ohio driver’s license, an Ohio ID card, a U.S. passport or passport card, a U.S. military ID, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ID, or an Ohio National Guard ID. Out-of-state driver’s licenses are not valid IDs.
David Rees and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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