Federal judge blocks enforcement of Ohio proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration

A federal judge has blocked enforcement of an Ohio law requiring eligible residents to produce documentary proof of citizenship when attempting to register to vote at a motor vehicle bureau

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked enforcement of an Ohio requirement that voters show proof of citizenship when registering to vote at a motor vehicle bureau, a rule that took effect for the first time this year.

Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican, said he would immediately appeal.

In a lawsuit brought on behalf of the Ohio Alliance of Retired Americans and the progressive group Red Wine & Blue by the Democrat-aligned Elias Law Group, U.S. District Court Judge Solomon Oliver Jr. in Cleveland ruled that the requirement appears to conflict with the National Voter Registration Act, which he said takes precedence.

His injunction suspends the practice of requiring such documentation ahead of the Oct. 5 registration deadline for this fall’s midterm elections.

It comes as President Donald Trump pushes Congress to pass a bill that would, among other election changes, require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote.

Ohio is among a handful of states with proof-of-citizenship laws in place for the first time this year . South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming also put similar requirements on the books for this year's midterms. Arizona had one already in force for state and local elections.

In South Dakota on Tuesday, the League of Women Voters and a Sioux Falls voter filed a lawsuit over that state’s new proof-of-citizenship requirement for voter registration. Among their requests is that a judge force the state to accept photocopies of eligible ID forms and also to rescind guidance requiring people using certain ID types to register in person.

Ohio's requirement was added last year to its motor voter law. In his ruling, Solomon wrote that the requirement “is more than the signed attestation to U.S. citizenship that Ohio’s other voter registration methods accept. Therefore, (the challenged provision) likely conflicts with the NVRA, because it is more than ‘the minimum amount of information necessary.’”

He further found that Ohio's overall “motor voter” registration process has illegally been limiting the option to sign up to vote to those who successfully obtain a driver's license, rather than offering it to everyone who submits an application for one, as federal law requires.

Ben Stafford, a partner at Elias Law, said in a statement that Ohio voters would now be able to register at the BMV without the requirement to show citizenship paperwork. He described the regulation as “exactly the type of government-imposed barrier that the NVRA exists to prevent.”

The judge's order prevents Ohio from requiring any driver’s license applicant to produce proof-of-citizenship documents before being offered the chance to register to vote, even those applicants turned away for lack of the proper paperwork. It doesn't cover applicants who indicate they are not U.S.