Voting rights group file lawsuit requesting Ohioans in police custody be allowed to vote

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The Hill
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Three organizations that work on voting rights issues have filed a lawsuit in a federal court in Ohio requesting that a judge order election officials and law enforcement around the state to provide emergency absentee ballots to Ohioans who remain in police custody through Election Day.

The Campaign Legal Center, MacArthur Justice Center and left-leaning think tank Demos on Tuesday filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio requesting an emergency order from the judge to be directed to officials statewide that would require officers to notify detainees of their rights to submit an absentee ballot.

The lawsuit argues that it would violate the First and 14th amendments to deny people the right to vote because they are in custody. The state delivers ballots to jailed Ohioans, but the deadline for requesting such a ballot passed on Friday, Nov. 2, leaving some recently-arrested Ohioans without an option for voting, it states.

"These are eligible voters who have no other means of voting because of Ohio election law as it currently stands," the CLC's senior legal counsel Mark Gaber told BuzzFeed News.

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