Voting

Senate Bill 293, signed into law in December 2025, is harmful, anti-democratic legislation that enacts a grab-bag of unfunded mandates and burdens that will impede the ability of legitimate voters to vote, and also encumber the work of Boards of Elections officials. Here are important points to know:

Voter Registration:
Starting March 20, 2026 the Ohio Secretary of State will begin cross checking BMV data with individual voter registration information for data mismatches. The Secretary of State will notify voters with mismatched data between their BMV file and voter registration file. Contacted voters will need to reconcile any data mismatches at least 14 days before the next election in order to cast a regular ballot. If a voter does not reconcile their data, they will be made to cast a provisional ballot, and provided additional information to their Board of Elections by the fourth day after Election Day.

Absentee Balloting:
Starting at the May 2026 primary, voters who have been contacted or flagged for having mismatched data between their BMV file and their voter registration, and have not reconciled their data, will not be able to vote by mail. These voters will still be able to vote early by going to their County Board of Elections and casting a provisional ballot. After casting a provisional ballot, the voter must return to their Board of Elections by the fourth day after Election Day to provide additional information to have their provisional ballot count.

Provisional Ballot:
Starting at the May 2026 primary, voters who cast a provisional ballot but do not return to their county Board of Elections to provide additional information and "cure" their ballot, will not have their provisional ballot counted and their voter registration will be canceled. A voter may re-register to vote if their registration is canceled for not curing a provisional ballot.