CINCINNATI — Almost a third of provisional ballots from the August special elections were rejected due to ID issues, according to Ohio Secretary of State data.
In the August special election, there were 30,612 provisional ballots counted, and 8,864 total provisional ballots were rejected. Out of that nearly 9,000 rejected ballots, 2,829 of them were rejected because the "voter failed to provide identification."
That equals out to almost a third of all rejected provisional ballots, which is more than double the amount from the November 2022 election.
Sherry Poland, the director of the Hamilton County Board of Elections, said most people who don't have an ID simply forget it. If a voter does forget their ID, they can still submit their provisional ballot, and then return with the valid ID and the vote will be counted.
"The most common form of ID that's used by voters that's still acceptable is an Ohio driver's license or an Ohio State ID, those forms of ID (are) still acceptable," Poland said. "We now also accept a passport for voting, which was something that was not acceptable before."
The data also comes after Ohio's voting ID laws changed in early 2023.
The new law, which Gov. Mike DeWine signed into law in January and took effect in April, requires voters to prove their identity with photo identification when casting a ballot in-person. Prior to this law, voters could use other documents, such as utility bills, bank statements, paychecks or other government-issued documents that listed a person's name and address.
The law also changed the timeline in which absentee voters could mail their ballots.
For those wanting to vote in the November 2023 general election, you'll need to bring an Ohio driver's license, Ohio state ID, military ID or passport to vote in-person. For those voting by mail, you will need to provide the last four digits of your social security number.
