2024 Election in Ohio: Hundreds of Non-Citizens Purged from Voter Rolls
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose is taking action to purge hundreds of non-citizens from the state’s voter rolls after an election year audit revealed flaws in the system. The audit uncovered 499 individuals who were registered to vote but were not U.S. citizens.
“These individuals failed to respond to notices from the Secretary of State’s office asking that they either confirm their citizenship status or cancel their registration,” LaRose’s office said in a statement.
While the removals announced on Thursday include individuals who confirmed their non-citizen status to the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, any individual losing their registration as a result of this action may submit a provisional ballot, which will be counted upon proof of citizenship.
Ohio law requires that in order for a person to be removed from voter rolls, they must have confirmed their lack of citizenship to the BMV on two separate occasions, and also have updated their voter registration or voted in between the two occasions.
LaRose emphasized the importance of upholding the constitution of the state, stating, “I swore an oath to uphold the constitution of our state, and that document clearly states that only United States citizens can participate in Ohio elections.”
The audit is an ongoing process, and LaRose’s office says more voter roll purges may be announced as Election Day nears. The state has also removed nearly 155,000 registrations confirmed to be abandoned and inactive for at least four consecutive years.
“We want to make sure a mistaken registration doesn’t become an illegal vote. We also want to make sure that lawfully registered citizens can participate seamlessly in the process,” LaRose said.
This move comes as the 2024 election is predicted to be a close one, with battleground states polling between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump. The state of Ohio is taking steps to ensure the integrity of the election process as the campaign season heats up.
