Fix Ensuring President Biden’s Place on Fall Ballot Approved by Ohio Senate

A temporary solution allowing President Joe Biden to be on the upcoming fall ballot was approved by the Ohio Senate on Friday during a special session dominated by Republicans.

The House passed the measure along with a ban on foreign nationals contributing to state ballot campaigns, which the Senate also approved on Friday. Both bills are now awaiting the signature of Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, who is expected to sign them into law.

The bill also expanded the definition of “foreign nationals” to include lawful permanent residents of the U.S., or green card holders. Some lawmakers expressed concerns about the constitutionality of this provision and its potential effects on the entire measure.

The special session was called by DeWine to address the fact that Ohio’s deadline for the November ballot falls before the Democratic convention where Biden is set to be nominated. However, the issue became tied to the foreign nationals prohibition, prompting the Democratic National Committee to find a workaround by holding a virtual roll call vote to nominate Biden.

The Democratic National Committee confirmed that the virtual roll call will proceed as planned.

Democrats accused Republicans in both chambers of taking advantage of the Biden situation to pass an unrelated bill that could undermine direct democracy in Ohio, based on previous voter decisions that went against GOP positions.

If the foreign nationals legislation becomes law, it could impact upcoming ballot issue campaigns in Ohio, including changes to redistricting laws, minimum wage increases, police immunity, and voting rights protection.