Civic groups raise privacy concerns over OH absentee voter ID bill

Civic groups in Ohio are urging Gov. Mike DeWine to veto a bill that would require absentee voters to provide a photo ID.

Under the bill, residents would mail a copy of their driver’s license or state ID card when requesting a ballot, or upload a photo of their ID and face to a new online portal the state would create before next year’s general election.

Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, said the change would create challenges for seniors and people with disabilities, as well as for the workers who keep elections secure.

“This is a massive change to election law, and it's also an unfunded mandate,” Miller said. “It's going to increase the cost to run elections for local government.”

Critics argue an online portal containing images of voters’ faces raises privacy concerns, and that mailing personal information in specially marked envelopes increases the risk of fraud. Republican lawmakers say the bill is needed to improve election integrity and align absentee and in-person voter requirements.

The original legislation was a bipartisan effort to ensure people experiencing homelessness can obtain free copies of their birth certificates and IDs. The new absentee voting change was quickly added and, according to Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, never given a thorough review.

Efforts to clamp down on early and absentee voting in GOP-led states have accelerated since the 2020 election. Despite mailing in his own ballot in Florida, President Donald Trump has referred to the practice as unreliable and a source of fraud.

But LaVera Scott, president of the Ohio Association of Election Officials, said that is not true.

“I have not seen any proof that there has been any widespread amount of fraud — or things of that nature — concerning absentee voting,” Scott said.

Scott said having a mailed-in photocopy of an absentee voter’s ID would serve little purpose with nothing to compare it to, and that procedures to keep voting secure are already in place.

More than 2.5 million Ohioans voted absentee or early in person in 2024, making up 45% of the total votes cast.