GOP lawmakers seek end
of vote window

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Republicans who control the Ohio Senate want to get rid of a disputed weeklong period during which new voters can register and then immediately cast a ballot, a top official said Monday.

Republicans planned to file a bill Tuesday that would require people choosing to vote early to register at least 30 days before they cast their ballot, Senate GOP Chief of Staff Matt Schuler said. For instance, someone who wished to vote on the first day of early voting -- 35 days before Election Day -- would then have to register to vote at least 65 days before the election.

The requirement that voters who vote on Election Day be registered at least 30 days before Election Day would not be changed.

The state Republican Party sued Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to stop the same-day window before the Nov. 4 election, but state and federal courts upheld it. Republicans say lawmakers never intended for Ohio to have same-day registration and voting, and that the one-stop shopping makes it too difficult for elections officials to prevent voter fraud.

About 13,000 Ohio voters -- or about 0.2 percent of registered voters -- used the overlap period before this year's election.

"We're aiming to clarify places where there's been some concern that it's not crystal clear," Schuler said.

Senate Republicans want to get the bill passed before the legislative session ends and a new, Democratic-controlled House takes over in January.

Republicans currently control the House by a margin of 53-46, and House Speaker Jon Husted -- a possible GOP candidate for Brunner's job in 2010 -- is open to election law changes.

"The speaker is eager to work with the Senate on the elections reform bill," said spokeswoman Karen Stivers. In the Senate, Republicans maintained their 21-12 majority in the November election.

The bill is likely to run into both legal and political opposition.

Dan Tokaji, an elections law expert at Ohio State University, said federal law prohibits states from having registration deadlines earlier than 30 days before Election Day.

"It's hard to see why anyone would want to make it more difficult to vote," Tokaji said.

Schuler said the GOP-proposed plan would not violate federal law because it would only apply to residents who choose to vote early.

Brunner, a Democrat, has set up an elections summit in December at which the elections process will be discussed and potential changes to the law will be proposed. She is unlikely to go along with any changes before the summit concludes and before the new legislature takes over.

"On the heels of a successful election, Secretary Brunner has called a bipartisan summit where we will examine what went well, and what needs to be improved," said spokesman Kevin Kidder. "We look forward to working with the new legislature and the governor next year to further improve Ohio's bipartisan elections system."

Gov. Ted Strickland sided with Brunner's efforts to discuss changes at the summit.

"In the recent past, election reform legislation rushed through the short period of time available in the lame-duck session has led to apparently unintended results," said spokesman Keith Dailey.

The Senate bill also takes aim at other areas of dispute between Republicans and Brunner over the elections process:

-- It would allow Brunner to share with county boards of election the names of voters whose registration data doesn't match information in government databases. The GOP sued Brunner in an effort to force her to release the information of about 200,000 newly registered voters whose given driver's license numbers or Social Security numbers didn't match records in other government databases. The U.S. Supreme Court found that the GOP didn't have standing to bring the case.

-- It would allow poll observers to be present at polling locations during early voting. Brunner had said she couldn't require local elections officials to allow observers during early voting because the law didn't explicitly give her the right.