Federal Court Blocks Ohio Law Requiring Proof of Citizenship for Voter Registration

A United States federal court has temporarily blocked an Ohio law that required proof of US citizenship from residents who wanted to register to vote while obtaining a driver’s license. In his ruling on Tuesday, US District Judge Solomon Oliver Jr granted a preliminary injunction against the law, stating it likely violates the US National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) because it requires more information than necessary to determine a resident’s eligibility to vote. Judge Oliver wrote, "Election officials do not need documentary proof of citizenship to assess a voter registration applicant’s citizenship because signed attestation of citizenship is enough." He also referenced a clause in the act that indicates each US state’s driver’s license application "shall serve as an application for voter registration with respect to election for Federal office unless the applicant fails to sign the voter registration application." Oliver emphasized that Ohio must provide applicants the opportunity to register once they’ve submitted their driver’s license application, rather than waiting for approval from the state’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV). He noted, "To interpret this section of the NVRA otherwise would allow States to make registering to vote at the BMV more onerous, and could result in fewer voter registrations because the opportunity to apply was not proactively offered to otherwise eligible citizens." In 1995, Ohio enacted a “motor-voter” law that allowed residents to register to vote when applying for a driver’s license, but this law was amended last year by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature in response to claims, supported by former President Donald Trump, that noncitizens were voting in the state’s elections. US law prohibits noncitizens from voting in federal elections. The ruling is viewed as a victory for voting rights advocates, including the group Red Wine & Blue, which sued Ohio’s Secretary of State, Frank LaRose, alleging that the law disenfranchised eligible voters and violated the NVRA. One of the group’s lawyers, Ben Stafford, stated, "With the registration deadline just weeks away, eligible Ohioans will now have the opportunity to register to vote at the BMV without having to produce unnecessary paperwork that is not required by federal law." LaRose's office has expressed disagreement with the decision and plans to appeal.