Voting Rights

Clark County Democratic Party
Resolution 2020-02
Supporting Voting Rights and a Safe, Fair and Accessible General Election
Approved June 17, 2020

WHEREAS the right of the citizens of Ohio to cast their ballots in fair and free elections and to have their votes counted is held sacred by the Clark County Democratic Party;

WHEREAS any reduction in access to early voting will disproportionately disenfranchise

people of color, low-income citizens, the elderly, and our military, who often rely on flexible, early voting periods, especially amid a pandemic;

WHEREAS increasing the difficulty of voting by mail/absentee voting will disproportionately affect people of color, low-income citizens, health-compromised citizens, the elderly, and our military, who rely on absentee ballots to overcome obstacles to voting in person and to secure their health and safety;

WHEREAS repealing or expanding statutory ratios of voters to voting machines or voters to precincts and/or consolidating polling locations will result in long, often unmanageable lines and a far less safe and orderly election, undoing the bipartisan consensus reached after the 2004 Ohio debacle and a commitment to never allow that scenario to occur again;

WHEREAS refusing to allow multiple secure ballot repositories (drop-boxes) in large

counties will reduce Ohio citizens’ access to safe voting and promote the traffic and lines seen in the April Primary;

WHEREAS refusing to use funds from the federal CARES Act and the Help America Vote  Act to send ballots to every registered voter in Ohio and/or to pay return postage for ballot applications and ballots is contrary to the intention of those Acts;

WHEREAS removing the ability of public health experts and officials to create safety

guidelines for in-person voting, if necessary, will unnecessarily force voters to risk their health to exercise their right to vote and will reduce participation in the election;

WHEREAS restricting nongovernmental voter participation organizations directly affects

people of color, low-income citizens, and the elderly, as these non-profit organizations are particularly likely to reach and engage these underserved citizens;

WHEREAS Democrats in the Ohio House and Senate have proposed numerous common sense bills and amendments to strengthen both in-person and mail-in voting, including on-line ballot applications, mailing postage-paid ballots to all voters, additional in-person early voting locations, multiple secure drop-boxes, counting ballots postmarked by Election Day, and allowing 17 year old High School Juniors to train and work at polling locations;

WHEREAS Democrats holding public offices at all levels around Ohio, as well as others who respect voting rights, have an opportunity to assist in protecting the right to vote in Ohio against the onslaught of purging by serving as hubs of non-partisan voter registration all across the state;

WHEREAS the 2020 General Election will be the first U.S. Presidential Election since 1982 without the protection of a consent decree forbidding the RNC from engaging in organized voter suppression;

WHEREAS an unfettered RNC plans to return to the vote-challenging, poll-watching, and intimidation practices that were repeatedly found to be in violation of the Voting Rights Act;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Clark County Democratic Party condemns the voter suppression practices and techniques described in this resolution and commits unequivocally to fighting voter suppression in all forms, whether that fight occur at the state level, or at the county board of election level; and

BE IT RESOLVED that the Clark County Democratic Party supports all of the heretofore described common sense reforms proposed by Democratic elected officials and urges the 133rd Assembly of the Ohio Legislature and the Clark County Republican Party to join in committing to fight voter suppression in all forms and to promoting best practices in expanding access to the polls for all eligible Ohioans; and

BE IT RESOLVED that the Clark County Democratic Party urges all Democrats to open hubs of non-partisan voter registration, where appropriate, between now and the last day of registration.