Voter ID Gets Major Mail-In Ballot Boost From Ohio Legislature

The Ohio Legislature passed a bill that would require photo ID to be submitted starting in 2027 for absentee voters’ mail-in ballots.

That’s in addition to what’s coming this November, when voters get the opportunity to enshrine Ohio’s current voter ID law into the state constitution.

If Gov. Mike DeWine signs House Bill 472 into law, absentee voters will have to show ID beginning with the November 2027 election.

A spokesperson for DeWine’s office told the Daily Signal on Thursday that staff “are currently reviewing the numerous bills passed yesterday by the General Assembly.”

HB 472 passed the General Assembly earlier this year with one vote in opposition. It was originally introduced by state Reps. Christie Cockley, a Democrat; and Jodi Salvo, a Republican; as a bill to waive fees for birth certificate copies for homeless people and permit the storage of documents.

Cockley claimed that “Senate Republicans hijacked” the bill she sponsored and asked for her name to be taken off.

As the bill’s preamble now reads, HB 472 aims “to require photo identification to cast absent voter’s ballots, with certain exceptions, [and] to allow electors to apply for those ballots through a secure online portal.”

The bill requires that those voters submit photo ID when they request an absentee ballot or submit it in person. It also directs the secretary of state to “establish and maintain” an online portal where voters can request an absentee ballot starting on September 3, 2027, for the November general election.

If an elector meets certain exceptions for photo ID, he or she must provide the last four digits of their Social Security number and their ID number. Free copies of photo ID must be provided by the secretary of state, boards of elections, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles, and public libraries.

A lack of photo ID requirements for mail-in ballots had been a concern among some Republicans.

Signal Ohio reported that HB 472 was meant to attract Republican members wary of SJR 10, the resolution to put voter ID in the state constitution, which passed last week.

The bill passed by the Senate on Wednesday came down largely along party lines, in a 23-10 vote, with all Democrats and one lone Republican voting against the bill.

Republican nominee for governor Vivek Ramaswamy, who last month called for a ballot initiative, released a statement on Wednesday night about the passage of both SJR 10 and HB 472.

“Congratulations to the Ohio House and Senate for giving Ohio voters the opportunity to enshrine voter ID requirements into the state constitution this November and for providing additional statutory protections to ensure voter ID is required for mail-in voting,” Ramaswamy said.

“Photo ID requirements to vote are common-sense measures, and I’m confident that Ohio voters will support the constitutional amendment by a wide margin in November.”

Polling from Heritage Action and Honest Elections Project Action shows that a majority of Ohioans support voter ID. The Honest Elections Project Action polling indicates that Ohio voters support photo ID for absentee mail-in ballots as well.

“The passage of SJR 10 is a major victory for election integrity and for the voters of the Buckeye State,” Heritage Action State Advocacy Manager Paul Lagemann also told the Daily Signal.

“Ohioans overwhelmingly support commonsense voter ID laws which make it easier to vote and harder to cheat. By enshrining photo identification requirements in the state constitution, lawmakers are responding directly to voter calls for secure and trustworthy elections. SJR 10 will help to safeguard Ohio’s elections for generations of Ohioans to come,”

SJR 10 passed the General Assembly along party lines, 61-27. Signal Ohio noted it will likely be formally known as Issue 3 on the ballot.