COLUMBUS – The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups filed a federal lawsuit on May 8 against Ohio’s elections chief over limits to when voters can cast an early ballot in the perennial battleground state.
Ohioans can cast an absentee ballot by mail or in person before Election Day without giving any reason. About 33 percent of those who voted in the 2012 presidential election cast an early ballot.
The lawsuit filed in Columbus federal court claims that recent cuts to early voting will make it difficult for tens of thousands of residents to vote and will unfairly affect black voters, who the groups say are more likely to use weekend and evening hours to vote early in elections.
