Ohio’s secretary of state is warning Democrats that unless they do more than has been done to date, President Joe Biden will not be on Ohio’s ballot for the presidential election.
Ohio has a law that says nominees for president and vice president must be "certified to the secretary of state or nominated on or before the 90th day before the day of the general election,” according to WLWT-TV.
This year, that deadline falls on Aug. 7. However, the Democratic National Convention is not even scheduled to start until 12 days after the deadline.
In past years, state lawmakers have passed legislative fixes that waive the deadline when a convention and Ohio’s deadline do not align.
Not this year.
Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens has said there is not enough interest on the part of Ohio Republicans in fixing the problem for action to be taken, according to Fox News.
"There’s just not the will to do that from the legislature," Stephens said.
With that as the backdrop, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose on Tuesday wrote the chairwoman of the Ohio Democratic Party, wondering how they plan to deal with the problem.
The letter, attached to a post on social media platform X, noted that LaRose asked in April for some hint of what the Democratic Party might be planning, without getting a response.
I’ve said from here to Colorado that it’s in the best interest of voters to have a choice in the race for president. I’m also duty-bound to follow the law as Ohio’s chief elections officer.
As it stands today, the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee will not be on the Ohio… pic.twitter.com/Y5AkZBoow2
— Frank LaRose (@FrankLaRose) May 21, 2024
In his post, LaRose said if Democrats do nothing, his hands are tied.
“I’ve said from here to Colorado that it’s in the best interest of voters to have a choice in the race for president. I’m also duty-bound to follow the law as Ohio’s chief elections officer,” La Rose said in his post.
“As it stands today, the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee will not be on the Ohio ballot,” he posted.
“That is not my choice. It’s due to a conflict in the law created by the party, and the party has so far offered no legally acceptable remedy," he wrote.
"The Ohio House speaker said today there won’t be a legislative solution, so I’ve sent a letter to @OHDems chair seeking (again) a solution that upholds the law and respects the voters. I trust they’ll act quickly,” he wrote.
Absent a legislative waiver, the options would be for Democrats to either sue to force Biden onto the ballot or find a way to officially nominate Biden before the convention to satisfy Ohio’s requirement before the state deadline.
Although WLWT did not have any comments from Democrats in its report, it wrote, “Either way, Ohio Democrats said the president will be on the November ballot.”
Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said a way will be found to get Biden on the ballot, saying that if the legislature will not act, then it's "going to be done by the court," according to Fox News.
