Vast majority of the 180,000 Ohio voters purged because they didn't vote

[Demovictory9]

https://www.dispatch.com/news/20190930/vast-majority-of-180000-ohio-voters-purged-because-they-didnt-vote

Vast majority of the 180,000 Ohio voters purged because they didn’t vote


Most of the voter registrations purged from Ohio’s rolls were canceled under the more controversial “supplemental process” that eliminates registrations for those who have not cast a ballot for six years, a Dispatch analysis of data from 88 county boards of elections shows. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office said those registrations could be duplicates, belong to deceased voters or those who have moved but didn’t notify the U.S. Postal Service. But voting rights advocates say it shows flaws in the system, which can sweep up eligible voters among those who should be canceled.

Ohio voters whose registrations were canceled in September overwhelmingly were purged from the rolls of eligible electors because they hadn’t cast ballots in the past six years.

The office of Secretary of State Frank LaRose speculated that many of those removed for not voting actually could have been duplicate registrations, belonging to voters who have died or moved without the Postal Service being notified.

Ohio’s 88 county boards of elections, under direction from the state, purged about 158,000 registrations of inactive voters in September, according to a Dispatch analysis of data provided to LaRose.

That represents about 87% of the 182,000 voter registrations that were purged Sept. 6, the final step in a process that began in 2015 under former Secretary of State Jon Husted, now the lieutenant governor. The data excludes Cuyahoga County and other counties that have not provided complete reports.

Registered voters can check the state’s database at https://www.ohiosos.gov/freshstart/ to see if their registration was among those purged. They can re-register to vote for the November election before Oct. 7 at https://olvr.ohiosos.gov/ or at their local board of elections.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. Other states have similar rules.

Vote. And vote more than once a decade.

In 2004 I ran for office in a Midwestern state. I did a lot of door-to-door with voter rolls supplied by the party. It was sometimes quite amazing how many different people were listed as voters at one address, because even though they'd moved and hadn't changed their registration, nor had they voted, they were still listed.

Perhaps there needs to be a better way to keep track of voters, but if you haven't voted in 6 years do not complain if you've been taken off the voter rolls.

[DeminPennswoods]

2. Thank you

I'm not sure people understand that if there was not a criteria for managing voter rolls, they would be unwieldy. IIRC, in Pennsylvania if you don't vote in 2 consecutive presidential elections, your name is removed.

[UniteFightBack]

6. There needs to be a better way to keep track of voters. Yes. nt

[Act_of_Reparation]

4. Many Americans were brought up to be apathetic and pessimistic towards politics.

This isn't a bug. It's a feature. So maybe get off your high horse.

[Codeine]

7. Well fucking vote then.

Sick to death of people who just drift by without engaging in the simplest and most effective political act imaginable. Lazy and stupid.