UPDATE: GOP now withdrawing request.
From the Dayton Daily News:
Hours after Ohio Democratic officials criticized Greene County for seeking early voter registration information, Greene County Prosecutor Stephen K. Haller said Friday afternoon, Oct. 10, that Sheriff Gene Fischer has withdrawn his request for 302 new voter registrations.
The Associated Press reported yesterday that Republican officials, led by a former law partner of McCain campaign state chairman Mike DeWine, are seeking un-redacted personal information on every single person who registered and voted in Greene County between September 30th and October 6th - despite acknowledging that they have zero evidence of any wrongdoing whatsoever.
According to the AP, "Greene County Sheriff Gene Fischer, a Republican, requested registration cards and address change forms Thursday for all 302 people who took advantage of the window... Representing Fischer is County Prosecutor Stephen Haller, a former law partner of Mike DeWine. DeWine, a former U.S. senator, chairs the Ohio campaign of Republican presidential nominee John McCain."
Greene County is the home five colleges: Wright State, Central State, Wilberforce, Cedarville Universities and Antioch College where many students have recently registered.
Greene County is home to Ohio Republican Party Deputy Chairman Kevin DeWine who has famously bragged that "nothing is off the table" when it comes to Republican voter suppression tactics in this election, including voter caging.
In a conference call earlier today, Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman said, "What we have seen in Greene County is very troubling. Instead of encouraging the involvement of every voter who has a legal right to cast a ballot in Ohio, the Republican Party seems dedicated to keeping as many voters from participating in this election as they possibly can."
"This a shameful, partisan fishing expedition of unprecedented proportions - led by the former law partner of John McCain's Ohio campaign chairman and occurring less than a month out from Election Day in the most critical battleground state in the country," said Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern.
For coverage of this in the Ohio Blogosphere:
Ohio Daily Blog: Redfern and Coleman Denounce Racially-Charged Voter Suppression in Greene County
Write Like She Talks: Is Ohio McCain campaign going after newly registered black college students?
Todd Hoffman
Director of Internet Operations
Ohio Democratic Party