Senate Passes Brenner, Gavarone Bill Protecting Ohio's Elections

COLUMBUS—The Ohio State Senate passed Senate Bill 293, sponsored by State Senator Andrew Brenner (R-Delaware) and State Senator Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green), which would require that all mail in absentee ballots be delivered to the board of elections by close of poll on Election Day and require the Ohio Secretary of States to verify citizenship of voters.

“Unfortunately, laws on the books in Ohio were allowing the integrity of our elections to be questioned,” Gavarone said. “By requiring ballots to be received and counted on Election Day and eliminating the possibility for non-citizens, dead and fictitious people, and duplicate registrations to legally be counted in our elections, Ohio has furthered our national reputation as an elections leader.”

On March 25th, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order instructing the Attorney General of the United States to enforce Title 2, Chapter 1, Section 7 and Title 3, Chapter 1, Section 1 of the U.S. Code against states that violate these provisions by including absentee or mail-in ballots received after Election Day in the final tabulation of votes. Senate Bill 293 would require all mail-in ballots to arrive by poll closing, with the exception of uniformed services and overseas absentee ballots. Thirty-four other states, both red and blue, require ballots to be in and counted on Election Day.

"I am proud to team up with Senator Gavarone to sponsor this legislation," added Senator Brenner. "This legislation will ensure that Ohio is abiding by federal election law and President Trump's executive order."

In addition to the absentee ballot requirements, Senate Bill 293 also includes other provisions authored by Senators Gavarone and Brenner to enhance election integrity. Those include strengthening voter roll accuracy by requiring monthly citizenship checks using BMV and SAVE data, as well as monthly reports to counties on deceased voters. It also requires election workers to challenge anyone flagged as a non-citizen and mandates corrections to any mismatched voter registration data.

“If you’re a legal citizen of the State of Ohio we have afforded many opportunities for votes to be cast, including absentee voting, 28 days of early voting, and, of course, in-person Election Day voting,” Gavarone said. “But thanks to this bill, Ohioans can be sure that illegal voting is stymied in this state, and that election results will be known promptly and accurately on Election Day.”

Senate Bill 293 has been sent to Governor DeWine for final approval.

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