I'm seeing lots of panicked comments about Republican caging in Ohio. No doubt they're going to try it, aided by some awful laws created by the Republican legislature. But, thankfully, Democrat Jennifer Brunner is in charge of elections now, not Ken Blackwell. The front-page article from Saturday's Columbus Dispatch is posted below
According to a front page story in Saturday's Columbus Dispatch, it looks like Secretary of State Brunner isn't going to let the Republicans do this without a fight:
Disputed voters to get hearing, Brunner orders
Saturday, September 6, 2008 3:12 AM
By Mark Niquette
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio voters can't have their registration canceled without a hearing if their eligibility is challenged before the election this fall, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner said yesterday.
Brunner issued the directive regarding voter challenges, a controversial issue in the 2004 presidential election in Ohio that could become a factor again this year, to county boards of elections.
She concluded that a 2006 state law is unconstitutional because it could allow elections boards to cancel a voter's registration without a hearing based only on mail being returned as undeliverable.
(Edited to only include the first few paragraphs of the story, rather than the entire thing, to avoid copyright infringement. I also added the story's author.)