Ohio judge extends provisional ballot counting

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - A federal judge has granted a request by a group of voter advocates to expand the conditions under which provisional ballots are counted in Ohio.

U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley ruled Wednesday that provisional ballots cast not just in the wrong precinct but in the wrong polling location altogether must still be counted.

The state had opposed the expansion, saying it could create Election Day chaos because of new training requirements for poll workers.

Marbley sided with the state in a second decision he issued Wednesday, agreeing to remove language from his own 2010 court order that deals with the types of identification voters are required to use when signing provisional ballot forms.

Neither the state nor the voters' advocates could say immediately whether they would appeal.