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Barry M. Horstman reports:

The U.S. Supreme Court today cleared the way for Ohioans to cast early in-person absentee ballots on the final three days before the Nov. 6 election.

In a major legal victory for President Barack Obama’s campaign, Justice Elena Kagan denied Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted’s request to overturn or put on hold lower federal court rulings that authorized early voting on the final Saturday through Monday before Election Day.

Shortly after the court ruled, Husted set uniform early voting hours for those days in all 88 counties: 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Sunday and 8 a.m-2 p.m. Monday.

The U.S. Supreme Court today sealed a legal victory for President Barack Obama’s campaign in the pivotal state of Ohio, leaving intact a ruling that restored early voting rights for the weekend before the Nov. 6 election.

• Cincinnati.com: Live video/chat: Second presidential debate

Ohio Republicans had sought to cancel early voting that weekend for everyone except members of the military. A U.S. appeals court in Cincinnati blocked the plan last week, saying it probably violated the constitutional rights of non-military voters. In a one-sentence order, the Supreme Court rejected a challenge to that ruling, filed by Ohio’s Republican secretary of state and attorney general.

Democrats and Republicans have jockeyed in Ohio for months over early voting, an option used heavily by blacks, women, the elderly and low-income people, according to the appeals court. A trial judge cited an estimate that 100,000 Ohioans would vote in the three days leading up to Election Day.

No Republican has ever won the White House without capturing Ohio, which controls 18 of the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the presidency. (more…)

Posted in: Election, News |

Tags: Tags: absentee, ballot, Barack Obama, Butler County Board of Elections, Butler County Election 2012, democrat, early voting, election, election 2012, election day, jon husted, Liberty Township election, Mitt Romney, Ohio election 2012, ohio supreme court, presidential, presidential race 2012, presidential race 2012 Ohio, republican, secretary of state, West Chester election

This is it, folks.

Today’s the first day Ohioans can vote and if you haven’t heard by now, you’ll be deciding the election.

Cincinnati.com has everything you need to know to help you vote – plus some cool fun stuff, too.

What you’ll find:

• What’s Issue 1? Who’s running for Congress in my district? Read our primers before you vote.

• Type in your address and build your own ballot with our voter guide.

• Go to Cincinnati.com Wednesday night to watch the first presidential debate with fellow local political junkies. Chat with them and comment on the candidates’ answers.

• Join our coverage. Use #ohel on Twitter.

• See how your neighbors are voting. Tell us who you’re voting for and why, then see what your neighbors have said.

• See our constantly updated map of candidate visits, both past and upcoming — follow Michele Obama’s visit to Cincinnati today live.

• Follow the first lady’s visit live this afternoon. Join our coverage: If you’re attending, Tweet your photos using #ohel.

• Think you can tell the candidates apart? Take our “Who said it?” quiz and see how you do.

Posted in: Election, News |

Tags: Tags: ballot, Barack Obama, candidate visits, candidates, democrat, early voting, election 2012, Issue 1, local levy, michele obama, Mitt Romney, Ohio, primer, quiz, republican

Secretary of State Jon Husted / AP Photo

Paul Kostyu reports:

More than 920,000 absentee ballot applications to vote by mail have been received by county boards of elections statewide, according to Secretary of State Jon Husted.

County boards of elections will begin sending ballots to eligible voters who have requested them Tuesday, 35 days ahead of the Nov. 6 election. Early in-person voting in Ohio begins Tuesday at 8 a.m. in each of Ohio’s 88 counties.

“We are ready,” Husted said at a press conference this afternoon. “Boards of elections are prepared and all voters can have confidence that Ohio will conduct a fair, open and secure general election.”

Still pending in federal court, however, is a case that could change whether polls are open the weekend and Monday before election. Husted wants to close early voting ono those days, but a federal judge ruled a state law prohibiting weekend voting unconstitutional. He ordered Husted to keep the polls open. The state has appealed.

Husted released the following numbers regarding this year’s election:

• 7.8 million Ohioans are currently registered to vote, which is down about 400,000 due to purging of registrations that were either invalid or duplicative or of voters who are deceased;
• 922,199 absentee ballot applications have been received as of Friday, Sept. 28;
• 10,823 military and overseas absentee ballots have been distributed as of Friday;
• Nearly 6.9 million absentee ballot applications were sent out to Ohio voters over the course of two statewide mailings;
• 62,600 voters and counting have updated their address online.

Voters must submit absentee ballot requests to county boards of elections no later than noon on Nov. 3. Forms also can also be downloaded at: www.MyOhioVote.com. Voted ballots must be postmarked by the day before Election Day and received no later than the 10 days after the election; that is by Nov. 16. Absentee ballots also may be delivered in person to boards of elections by the close of the polls on Election Day. They may not be returned at polling locations.

Husted said he expects about a 70 percent turnout of Ohio voters this year, the same as in 2008.

Posted in: Election, News |

Tags: Tags: absentee ballots, ballot, election, election 2012, jon husted, polls, presidential election, vote

Michael D. Clark reports:

When it comes to asking for a school tax hike, timing can be everything, Lakota school officials said Monday evening.

They explained why they are backing away from the November ballot, which they had considered but now view as the wrong time frame.

“The decision is one of practicality,” said Lakota Superintendent Karen Mantia. “We need to spend time with our residents and we need to find out what people are willing to support.”

Last week, board president Ben Dibble revealed that the board’s consensus was to avoid a third consecutive year of placing a proposed school tax increase on the ballot.

Voters in the district, which is the second largest in Southwest Ohio, have rejected three levies in the last two years.

Under Ohio regulations the governing boards of districts are not required to vote to abstain from placing a levy on the ballot.

Mantia said, “we know we are going to have to come back but we want to be on better footing.”

Two main reasons are prompting officials at the academically top-rated district to step back from previous consideration of the last ballot available in 2012.

State biennium budget negotiations don’t begin until early 2013 and given that legislative process’ unpredictability in recent years it would be prudent for school officials to first learn what funding is coming and then determine the level of local funding needed through a new local tax levy.

Moreover, pending academic core standards imposed by the state will entail more undetermined costs for all of Ohio’s 613 public school systems.

Lakota is the largest school system to earn the state’s highest academic rating of “excellent with distinction.”

Because of budget cuts in recent years totaling more than $25 million, thousands of Lakota students lost busing services this school year and learned in more crowded classes.

The recent slicing of another $10.5 million from the upcoming school year, including 141 teaching, classroom aide and staff positions and the loss of some elective classes, will mean even more changes starting in August.

Posted in: Board of Education, Schools |

Tags: Tags: ballot, Ben Dibble, budget, Karen Mantia, Lakota schools, levy, school board, taxes