Rep. Brown joins House Democrats to urge LaRose to do more to prepare state for November election

COLUMBUS— Assistant Minority Whip Richard Brown (D-Canal Winchester) and House Democrats Tuesday sent a letter to Secretary of State Frank LaRose addressing recent major developments in Ohio’s elections. Ohioans watched last week as Post Office mailboxes and processing machinery were dismantled and removed in Ohio and across the country. Following national outcry over potential election interference, USPS has said they would halt additional reorganization changes until after the November election, but it is still unclear whether the reductions in service and processing will be undone.

Amid the USPS controversy, Secretary LaRose held a press conference to announce he was prohibiting all counties, no matter their size and population, from having more than one secure ballot drop box. He also said he would not require masks in polling places and recently ordered Boards of Elections to send voter purge mailings to 119,000 Ohioans just one month before the start of Early Voting.

“Ensuring a fair, safe and secure vote for November is of the utmost importance, especially as we continue to struggle as a nation with COVID-19” said Rep. Brown. “Ohio House Democrats are asking Secretary LaRose to take commonsense steps that are already authorized by law to protect the right to vote, even in the midst of a pandemic. I am hopeful that he will enact these reforms that are frankly long overdue.”

The members raised their concerns with these alarming choices and demanded that Secretary LaRose do everything in his power for voters in these unprecedented times. The caucus provided him a 16-point checklist of what they would like to see from his office including:

• Multiple secure drop boxes
• Paying return postage
• Keeping all polling locations open
• Online absentee ballot application