Use it or Lose It- Ohio to Purge Voter Rolls

At the end of February, in an ordinance with the Board of Elections offices across the state, Secretary of State Frank LaRose updated the voter rolls, purging thousands of names. This process was updated in 2018 when two directives were issued by the previous administration, one under the process for changing address and one under the supplemental process, which ordered local boards of elections to mail notices to inactive electors to confirm their address and status as registered voters. This action started a four-year clock for the cancellation of inactive voters’ registrations, meaning that after six years of inactivity, a voter would be purged from the registration database.

Other ways voters can be deemed eligible for purging include incarceration, death, and moving. In early March, the boards identified 139,770 registrations eligible for cancellation in the state. Nearly 11,000 were from Franklin County alone. In the past, the state has accidentally purged active voters, and it is recommended to check for your name on the list of purged voters. Additionally, those who were purged and wished to vote this year are urged to re-active their registration.

In 2018, the US Supreme Court upheld this problematic “use it or lose it” voter rolls purging law in a 5-4 ruling. The challenge came from a man who decided to sue the state after he felt he was wrongfully purged. Larry Harmon did not want to vote in the Obama/Romney election and stayed home. A few years later, he turned out for a ballot initiative where he was told he was no longer registered. He had lived in the same house for over 16 years and claimed never to receive a letter or a warning of his voter registration becoming inactive. Lower courts ruled that the state law violated the National Voter Registration Act, which states that a voter could not be removed from the rolls due to lack of participation. Justice Breyer wrote about this the dissent, saying federal statute does not allow someone to be purged from the rolls by reason of the person’s failure to vote, which is what the Ohio law exactly does. Americans are born with the right to vote in this country, and it should not be handled in the manner of “use it or lose it.” In Harmon’s argument, he said the state does not take away my right to buy a gun if I choose not to buy one, so why do they take my vote away if I choose not to vote?

It is not uncommon to see voters accidentally purged as well. The purging is done by hand at each county Board of Elections office, which is prone to human error. In the 2019 purge, over one thousand voters in Franklin County were incorrectly purged from rolls, along with handfuls of voters from 5 other Ohio counties. According to the US Election Assistance Commission, 17.3 million voters nationwide were purged between the 2016 presidential and 2018 midterm elections. Voter purging can have extreme effects on high-stake elections. Voters who may not know they were purged, or in some cases were incorrectly purged, turn out to vote and are turned away from casting a ballot. In 2020, Georgia removed 300,000 voter registrations from the roles leading up to the pivotal Presidential Election, and similarly, Wisconsin removed about 200,000. These more extensive purges can potentially impact how elections flip in what way. To combat the accidental removals and larger purges, democrats are urging a third party to analyze the roles rather than the boards themselves.

With a whopping 45,000 names in Northeast Ohio alone removed from the rolls, double-checking that your name was not removed may be a good idea. The Secretary of State has created a Registration Readiness website to view registrations that have been identified as a risk of cancellation. If you find your registration is on this list, you can re-register online, by mail, or at your county’s Board of Elections office. Coming off the whirlwind of the new Ohio voter ID law, it seems like no coincidence the purge was so large this time.

Rideshare2Vote is dedicated to ensuring that every vote counts. If you or someone you know has been purged from the rolls, follow the necessary guidelines to re-register yourself, or call your county Board of Elections office with any questions. Also, if you need a ride to the polls, Rideshare2Vote will offer free, round-trip rides in various cities across Ohio and more! Check our website to see if we are. driving in your area.

by Heather Tingley