News

Bid By Ohio’s Secretary Of State To Make Ballots Postage Paid Is Rejected

By: Jo Ingles | Statehouse News Bureau
Posted on: Monday, September 14, 2020

< < Back to

COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — A panel of lawmakers has shot down a request by Ohio’s Republican Secretary of State that would have allowed his office to pay for postage for mail-in ballots.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose wanted approval from the Ohio Controlling Board to take $3 million dollars from a fund his office controls for postage for mail-in ballots.

“It incentivizes getting the ballots back quickly. It doesn’t have any impact in a partisan way. It doesn’t benefit the Republicans. It doesn’t benefit the Democrats. What it does is benefit voters as an added convenience and it benefits our boards of elections by getting those ballots back in the mail very quickly,” LaRose says.

Some of the seven board members were concerned about making this change so close to the election. And they pointed out Ohioans have more than one way to vote.

Early, in person voting at local boards of elections begins October 6.