Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 12, 2021
CONTACT: press@secure-democracy.org
NEW POLL: Bipartisan Support for Expanded Voter Access in Ohio Elections
Vast majority of Ohio voters support expanding access to voter registration and early voting methods
COLUMBUS, Ohio— A bipartisan supermajority of Ohioans – 93 percent – were satisfied with how the Ohio 2020 elections were conducted, according to a new statewide poll released today by Secure Democracy and administered by The Tyson Group.
The poll also found widespread, bipartisan support among Ohio voters for policies that expand voting access:
84 percent in favor of modernizing the voter registration process at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, including 82% of Republican voters and 85% of rural voters;
78 percent in favor of allowing counties to provide more than one early voting location, including 65% of Republican voters and 75% of rural voters; and
76 percent in favor of enabling counties to provide multiple secure ballot drop off locations, including 65% of Republican voters and 74% of rural voters.
In contrast, a majority of Ohioans oppose measures that would restrict voter access, including 67 percent of voters who oppose a requirement for the notarization of absentee ballots.
“Ohioans were satisfied with their most recent experience voting and want to strengthen our sacred tradition of in-person voting by protecting early voting. They also want to introduce greater transparency through an online absentee ballot request system,” said Sarah Walker, executive director of Secure Democracy. “We’re glad to see legislators take steps to make Ohio elections more transparent, but we’re disappointed to see that elections reform legislation would impose barriers to in-person, early voting. Voter transparency shouldn’t come at the expense of access, and we’ll be working to make sure that doesn’t happen in Ohio.”
The research comes as Ohio lawmakers introduced H.B. 294, election reform legislation that would create several new, widely-supported improvements to voting in Ohio, such as automated voter registration at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and an online ballot tracking portal. However, as currently drafted, the bill would also impose numerous significant and unpopular barriers if enacted, such as the elimination of in-person, early voting the Monday before elections, shortening the absentee request period by a full week to require voters to submit their application 10 days before an election, and strict new voter ID requirements for absentee voters.
Among the poll’s key findings, there is bipartisan support across Ohio for:
Enabling voters to use a U.S. passport or student ID with a photo and birth date as valid ID for casting a ballot. 73 percent of all voters support; 62 percent of Republican voters support; 73 percent of rural voters support.
Providing a secure online website for voters to request their absentee ballot. 71 percent of all voters support; 58 percent of Republican voters support; 61 percent of rural voters support.
Ohio voters also oppose enacting new barriers to voting, such as:
Reducing early voting days. 60 percent of all voters oppose; 74 percent of moderate voters oppose; 52 percent of rural voters oppose.
Requiring voters to pay an officially authorized person, or notary, to sign their private absentee ballot before submitting it to be counted. 67 percent of all voters oppose; 57 percent of Republican voters oppose; 61 percent of rural voters oppose.
Commissioned by Secure Democracy, the survey of 600 likely voters in Ohio was administered via live callers from April 21-23, 2021. The full analysis from The Tyson Group can be found here.
###
About Secure Democracy
Secure Democracy is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that works to improve election integrity across the United States. We educate policymakers and the public about what it takes to safeguard our voting systems. We collaborate with state leaders, election administrators, election integrity experts, and allies to ensure that all eligible citizens have the freedom to vote how they choose.