As Introduced

126th General Assembly
Regular Session
2005-2006
S. B. No. 36


Senators Spada, Jacobson, Armbruster, Schuler, Mumper 



A BILL
To amend section 3505.18 of the Revised Code to 1
generally require all electors who appear in a 2
polling place to vote to provide identification 3
before being permitted to cast a ballot.4


BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

       Section 1. That section 3505.18 of the Revised Code be 5
amended to read as follows:6

       Sec. 3505.18. When(A)(1) Except as otherwise provided in 7
division (A)(2) of this section, when an elector appears in a 8
polling place to vote he, the elector shall announce histo the 9
precinct election officials the elector's full name and address to 10
the precinct election officialsand provide to them proof of the 11
elector's identity in the form of a current valid driver's license 12
or other current valid photo identification. He13

       (2) If the election for which the elector appears in a 14
polling place to vote is a federal election, if the elector 15
registered to vote by mail, and if the elector has not previously 16
voted in an election for federal office in this state, the elector 17
shall announce to the precinct election officials the elector's 18
full name and address and provide to them proof of the elector's 19
identity in the form of a current valid photo identification or a 20
copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, 21
paycheck, or other government document that shows the name and 22
address of the elector. If such an elector does not provide to the 23
precinct election officials any of the forms of identification 24
specified in this division, the elector may cast a provisional 25
ballot in that federal election under 42 U.S.C. 15482.26

       (B) After the elector has announced the elector's full name 27
and address and provided identification under division (A) of this 28
section, the elector shall then write histhe elector's name and29
address at the proper place in the poll lists or signature30
pollbooks provided thereforfor the purpose, except that if, for 31
any reason, an elector shall beis unable to write histhe 32
elector's name and address in the poll list or signature pollbook, 33
the elector may make histhe elector's mark at the place intended 34
for histhe elector's name, and a precinct election official shall 35
write the name of the elector at the proper place on the poll list 36
or signature pollbook following the elector's mark, upon the37
presentation of proper identification. The making of such a mark38
shall be attested by the precinct election official, who shall 39
evidence the same by signing histhe precinct election official's40
name on the poll list or signature pollbook as a witness to such41
the mark.42

       The elector's signature in the poll lists or signature43
pollbooks shall then shall be compared with histhe elector's44
signature on histhe elector's registration form or a digitized 45
signature list as provided for in section 3503.13 of the Revised 46
Code, and if, in the opinion of a majority of the precinct 47
election officials, the signatures are the signatures of the same 48
person, the clerks shall enter the date of the election on the 49
registration form or shall record the date by such other means as 50
may be prescribed by the secretary of state. If the right of the 51
elector to vote is not then challenged, or, if being challenged, 52
hethe elector establishes histhe elector's right to vote, hethe 53
elector shall be allowed to proceed intoto use the voting54
machine. If voting machines are not being used in that precinct, 55
the judge in charge of ballots shall then detach the next ballots 56
to be issued to the elector from Stub B attached to each ballot, 57
leaving Stub A attached to each ballot, hand the ballots to the 58
elector, and call histhe elector's name and the stub number on 59
each of the ballots. The clerk shall enter the stub numbers 60
opposite the signature of the elector in the pollbook. The elector 61
shall then retire to one of the voting compartments to mark his62
the elector's ballots. No mark shall be made on any ballot which 63
would in any way enable any person to identify the person who 64
voted the ballot.65

       Section 2. That existing section 3505.18 of the Revised Code 66
is hereby repealed.67