In haste, the Ohio Senate has advanced , asking Ohioans statewide about what identification they should need to vote.
The constitutional amendment still needs a floor vote in the House, which seems likely next week, to make it onto November ballots. The Senate floor vote was 22-9.
Photo ID is required on Election Day in Ohio, and it has been since 2023, but state GOP leaders have said the law they fought to get to Gov. Mike DeWine鈥檚 desk three years ago isn鈥檛 enough. They want voters to decide whether to codify existing ID requirements in the state constitution.
鈥淎mending our constitution should never be taken lightly,鈥� Sen. Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) testified Wednesday. 鈥淎nd the General Assembly will not have the final say on the matter before us today.鈥�
Ohioans are the ones with the last word on how the constitution gets amended. The question likely to go before them is if photo ID should be required to vote in person, early or at the polls. Under existing law, Ohioans generally need a state driver鈥檚 license or ID card, a United States passport or passport card or a military ID to do so.
The effort does not alter mail-in voting, which carries less stringent ID requirements. A small tweak, made Tuesday in a Senate committee, leaves the issue to future legislators. But a contingent on the right, including Sen. Al Cutrona (R-Canfield), has criticized the lack of stricter language.
鈥淚 guess we鈥檙e going to have to rely on the House to clean our mess a little bit,鈥� Cutrona testified. 鈥淎s it stands today, I鈥檓 a 鈥榥o鈥� vote.鈥�
All of the Democrats on the Senate floor voted against SJR 10, too, with a few introducing amendments that were shot down.
鈥淚 find it telling, how quickly this resolution has moved,鈥� Sen. Willis Blackshear (D-Dayton) testified Wednesday. 鈥淗ere we are, focused on an issue that does not exist.鈥�
SJR 10, and the concurrent , were only introduced a few weeks ago but could get the final green light as soon as next week. But the effort still needs 60 votes in the House, and members on both sides of the aisle have shared their reservations with the Statehouse News Bureau.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to talk to the members,鈥� House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) told reporters Wednesday. 鈥淐ertainly something like this, they鈥檙e going to be like, there鈥檚 2% of it I don鈥檛 like, and each time you change something, somebody else doesn鈥檛 like that change.鈥�