Letter: There is help available to navigate Ohio's new photo ID law

The Daily Record
Updated ·2 min read
Letter to the editor

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting a healthy democracy.

One of our activities is to bring information to voters about candidates, and about the voting process. To this end, the League of Women Voters of Wayne County has an information website called Vote 411. A voter can go to vote411.org to find out what candidates will be on their ballot, and to see the candidates’ answers to relevant questions.

Currently, we have responses from candidates who will be in local primaries on May 2 on the vote411 website.

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The website has lots of other information for voters, including links to useful sites.

I’d also like to add some information about our new state voting laws. Voting in-person (early or on election day) now requires a current photo ID. This is a driver’s license, an Ohio photo ID, a passport, or a military ID (U.S. military, National Guard, or Department of Veterans Affairs).

If you don’t have one of these, you can get a free photo ID at the BMV office. The catch is the documents you will need to get the ID. It may be difficult or expensive to get your original birth certificate and Social Security card, or other documents.

To get more information on this, I suggest you check the website for the BMV (Bureau of Motor Vehicles) of Ohio, where they list the acceptable documents to get the photo ID. Also, the League of Women Voters state office website, lwvohio.org, has good information on the new voting laws.

There is an excellent organization called VoteRiders that helps individuals obtain the documents they need for the state ID, and can help with the cost. Check for them online, or call their helpline at 844-338-8743.

Finally, if you don’t have a photo ID, the easiest approach is to vote by absentee ballot. With this you only need to provide the last four digits of your Social Security number. But call the Wayne County Board of Elections (330-287-5480) right away to request an application for the ballot, to complete the process on time.

Kathy Helmuth, Wooster

President, League of Women Voters of Wayne County

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Letter: There is help available to navigate Ohio's new photo ID law