It's primary/special election day in Ohio. What you need to know
With levy items and candidate races in only some communities, most voters in central Ohio have no reason to head to the polls on Tuesday for Ohio's primary/special election.
But there are several municipal and school levies in some communities across the region. Many municipal levies involve funding for fire and EMS protection, while some are for street, road, bridge and even cemetery maintenance. There are also a couple zoning amendments and gas and/or election referendums in individual communities.
School levies range from funding needed to cover basic operating costs to replacing schools.
Polls are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. statewide.
For election results as they become available Tuesday, visit Dispatch.com.
Where do I vote in Ohio?
To see whether you have something to vote on, you can find your polling place and get a sample ballot by going to the Ohio Secretary of State website or your county board of elections website.
What do I need to vote?
Before you head out to vote in person at your local precinct, make sure you have a valid voter identification now that a new Ohio law requires voters to show photo ID for in-person voting at the polls.
More: Ohio has a new voter ID law. Here's what you need to know for the May election
Voting in Ohio: How to get free state ID under Ohio's new election law
If you don't have the necessary information to vote on Election Day, Ohioans can cast a provisional ballot at their polling places and have up to four days after the election to provide needed information to their county board of election officials.
In Franklin County, voters in the Madison-Plains Local Schools will help decide a bond issue levy for replacing schools, an essentially meaningless mayoral race in Gahanna, as the two candidates on the ballot automatically move on to the November general election, and there are also a number of local liquor options for voters to decide in some individual precincts in Columbus and other communities.
Both candidates in Gahanna's mayoral primary will appear on November's general election ballot
In Gahanna, voters may cast a ballot Tuesday for a mayoral candidate in a nonpartisan primary election — even though it's largely unnecessary. Though only two candidates are running for mayor, changes two years ago to the city's charter requires a primary election despite the top two vote-getters automatically moving on to the general election.
Gahanna Mayor Laurie A. Jadwin faces a challenge from Steve Browne, an assistant principal at Columbus City Schools' Dominion Middle School and husband of Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Kim Browne. But regardless of how many votes each gets Tuesday, both candidates will advance to battle it out again in the Nov. 7 general election.
More: Charter glitch forces unnecessary, costly Gahanna mayoral primary
Madison-Plains Local School District levy would replace aging buildings with pre-K-12 complex
Also on the ballot is a Madison-Plains Local School District levy that would cost property owners $347 for each $100,000 of county appraised property value if approved.
The district — which has about 1,100 students in the southwestern-most part of Pleasant Township in Franklin County, the southern part of Madison County, and a small part of northern Fayette County — wants to replace its aging buildings, one of which is nearly 70 years old.
The district is seeking voter approval of a 9.9-mill, 37-year property tax levy to fund the district's $63.05 million local share of demolishing current buildings and constructing a new pre-kindergarten through high school complex, including career tech, on the current campus on Linson Road, west of Ohio 38 in Paint Township.
If Madison-Plains voters approve the local share, the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission will contribute about $5.59 million toward the project.
elagatta@dispatch.com
@EricLagatta
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: When are the polls open and what's on your ballot in central Ohio?
