Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted just won't stop trying to purge voters from the rolls and using tax dollars to assist Republican candidates.
According to his website, there are over 8 million registered voters in Ohio. Husted has mailed an "Application to Vote Absentee By Mail" to each of these voters. The absentee ballot application was mailed presorted standard U.S. Postage. Assuming the price per piece of mail was twenty five cents, the cost to mail 8 million pieces was $2 Million (this price doesn't include the cost to purchase the mailing envelope; the return envelope; or the double sided, multi-colored absentee ballot application). That's a lot of money to spend mailing out absentee ballot applications to people who didn't request them. So what's really behind the mailing?
First, in bold capitalized letters, the envelopes are marked "DO NOT FORWARD". Voters who have moved and not updated their address with their local Board of Elections will have their absentee ballot application returned to Husted's office by the U.S. Postal Service. Once Husted receives the returned application, he will then, most likely, forward the name and address to the local Board of Elections for purging. At the very least, a voter who appears at their polling place to vote on Election Day, will have a problem and be pressured, or forced, to vote a provisional ballot. The goal, of course, is to purge voters.
Second, historically, Republicans have done a much better job in Ohio of getting their voters to vote absentee by mail. They have had problems getting their voters to actually request the absentee ballot applications. This move helps them overcome one of their hurdles and strengthens one of their strongpoints.
Is Husted's use of tax dollars to mail absentee ballot applications illegal? Maybe not. Is Husted doing this because he wants more people to participate in the voting process? Be for real.