Ohio House Passes Legislation to Simplify Minor Party Elections Requirements

The Ohio House of Representatives today voted to pass Amended Substitute Senate Bill 193, legislation that revises the process for determining political party status and establishing new political parties.

Am. Sub. S.B. 193 addresses a gap in Ohio law that has made the law pertaining to Ohio elections ambiguous and unconstitutional since 2006. Under the bill, minor parties would be required to demonstrate an initial level of support through voter signatures in order to form a political party, and then demonstrate an actual level of support through votes achieved at the polls.

“Amended Substitute Senate Bill 193 institutes reasonable changes to make Ohio’s elections fairer to all candidates and party affiliations,” said Speaker of the Ohio House William G. Batchelder (R-Medina). “It rectifies an issue that for years has made the ballot process unclear, inconsistent and unconstitutional. This much-needed law will provide the necessary balance to ensure that future elections have consistent standards and to protect the integrity of our elections system.”

Under current Ohio law, minor party candidates only are required to submit half the number of signatures (25 signatures) that major party candidates must collect (50 signatures) in order to appear on the ballot. Furthermore, they are permitted to collect signatures from any registered voter rather than a particular party affiliation.

In 2006, District Court Judge Algenon Marbley and the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals both found that Ohio’s statues on minor party formation were unconstitutional during the case Libertarian Party of Ohio v. Blackwell. The General Assembly has not yet successfully acted to correct Ohio law to account for the court’s ruling. As a result of this discrepancy in Ohio law, the past two Secretaries of State have simply given automatic recognition to individuals seeking minor party recognition, as they have had no clear law to follow or enforce.

Am. Sub. S.B. 193 specifies that in order to qualify as a minor political party, a candidate must submit a petition to the Ohio Secretary of State no later than 125 days prior to the general election. This change will give minor parties more time to submit their formation petitions.

Additionally, the petition must have signatures that total 1 percent or more of the total votes cast at the most recent gubernatorial or presidential election, as well as at least 500 electors from each of at least 8 of the 16 congressional districts in Ohio. To continue to qualify as a minor party for future elections, a party’s candidate for governor or president must receive at least 3 percent of the total vote cast in the most recent election.

The proposed thresholds for both minor party formation and continuing minor party status are similar to those in many other states.

Am. Sub. S.B. 193 will move back to the Ohio Senate for concurrence.