OHIO — The Ohio Senate voted to pass a bill that would require all absentee ballots in future elections to be delivered to local boards of elections by the time polls close on election day.
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Senate Bill 293 was passed in the Senate by a vote of 23-10 on Wednesday, Nov. 5.
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Democrats voted unanimously against the bill, with one Republican senator joining their dissent.
If passed, S.B. 293 would require all absentee ballots, delivered either by mail or by hand, to be returned by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day, with an exception for military and overseas ballots.
The state’s existing law allows a grace period for domestic mail-in ballots, which are counted as long as they’re postmarked the day before the election at the latest and are delivered to the board of elections within four days of Election Day.
S.B. 293 would eliminate this grace period and shorten the mail-in return window for Ohio voters by four days.
The proposed bill will now head to the Ohio House of Representatives for further consideration.
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