Hicks-Hudson Condemns Voter Suppression Bill

Today, state Senator Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo) voted against Senate Bill 293, a bill that eliminates the grace period for mail-in ballots to be received.

“It seems every week, Senate Republicans continue to erode Ohioans' rights. Today, it is with absentee ballots that must be delivered to the board of elections office on Election Day,” said Hicks-Hudson. “In Lucas County, we know that it takes unreasonable extra days for our mail to be delivered across the street. Shortening the time for ballots to be received will disenfranchise thousands of Lucas County voters who rely on absentee ballots and effectively silence them in the name of a fairytale fraud. You can take a credit card anywhere in the world with a 4-digit pin and take out money, but we continue to restrict voting abilities while leveraging the under-resourced postal system to suppress our voters.”

This legislation would eliminate the grace period that allows absentee ballots postmarked by the day before Election Day to be counted if they arrive in the mail up to four days after Election Day. Ballots would instead need to be delivered to county boards of elections by the time that polls close on Election Day.

Senate Bill 293 now heads to the Ohio House of Representatives for consideration.