Provisions of Ohio's new voter registration rules that would have required the person who registered the new voters to turn in the forms him/herself or face criminal penalties have been thrown out by a U.S. district judge. From the Columbus Dispatch...
A federal judge threw out new state rules governing voter-registration drives yesterday, saying they appear to violate the First Amendment and hurt efforts to sign up new voters.
U.S. District Judge Kathleen O'Malley issued an order from the bench halting enforcement of the registration rules. She said she planned to issue a detailed written order next week.
A coalition of voter-advocacy groups and Democratic lawmakers sued the state, asking O'Malley to throw out the regulations. They said the rules were intimidating and impaired their registration drives, particularly in lowincome and minority areas, because they include criminal penalties.
O'Malley said she would have liked to have months to study the case but wanted to make a ruling before Labor Day weekend, which traditionally is a heavy voter-registration drive time.
The judge said that, in light of her ruling, voters should ignore the references to the criminal penalties on forms used to sign up new voters.
After the judge finished her remarks, the Rev. Tony Minor, pastor of Community of Faith Assemblies in Cleveland, expressed delight.
"Voting rights in Ohio have just been emancipated, and now, our goal is to replace fear with enthusiasm," Minor said. He is one of the plaintiffs who has led voter-registration efforts in the city's black community.
In the lawsuit, filed in July, the plaintiffs argued that criminal penalties for violating voter registration rules could deter people from canvassing. The law requires each person who registers voters to return the forms either in person or by mail to the local board of elections.
In the past, a canvasser could return forms to a church or institution promoting a voter registration drive. Those groups could forward the forms to the local elections board.
O'Malley discounted Ohio's argument that the rules are designed to guard against fraud. She also said the Ohio registration rules seem to go against the spirit of the national Voting Rights Act of 1965 that government should "assist in reducing barriers to registration wherever possible."
But that's part of the GOP's grand strategy, isn't it, Mr. Blackwell...?
http://www.dispatch.com/...