“It’s worth repeating that the administration does not have legal authority to control elections or change the voting process,” said Catherine Turner, executive director of Common Cause Ohio. “The Trump administration continues to make clear its true intention in deploying federal law enforcement: to spread fear and take power from the American people.”
Turner added, “It is now up to state and local election officials and the voters themselves to uphold the law and protect Americans’ fundamental freedom to vote.”
Jen Miller, executive director of the Ohio League of Women Voters, told this news outlet the League has not heard of any similar situations of DHS investigating alleged voter fraud at schools elsewhere in Ohio.
Miller noted that high schools are required by law to offer voter registration to 18-year-olds. She said Ohio already lags behind other neighboring states in 18-year-old voter registration.
“Registering students when they turn 18 helps turn lessons from the classroom into real civic participation,” Miller said. “We strongly condemn any efforts to intimidate Ohio students, schools, and leaders, and we will continue to monitor this situation closely.”
All Voting Is Local Ohio Director Steve David said the Ponitz incident was an intimidation tactic to silence voters.
“The tactic of coercion is not new, either; just like the federal shakedown in Minnesota, where they tried to leverage removing immigration agents to extort private voter data, DHS agents in Ohio are abusing their power to silence and intimidate voters,” David said.
Who runs elections?
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose — a Republican running this for for state auditor — oversees elections in Ohio. Local boards of elections run the actual elections.
The directors of the boards of elections, who oversee daily operations, in Montgomery, Greene, Miami and Warren counties are all Republicans, with a co-equal Democratic deputy director. Each board of elections is also run by a board evenly split between Republican and Democratic members.
Asked about the Ponitz visit, the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office said they can’t comment on investigations but every allegation of election misconduct is taken seriously.
“We’re working daily with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to uphold the highest standards of election integrity in Ohio,” said Ben Kindel, press secretary for the Ohio Secretary of State. “That includes cooperating with our federal partners on a number of active cases.”
Kindel said voter fraud is rare in Ohio, “because of the work we do to keep it that way.”
President Donald Trump says he wants to “take over” elections in Democratic-run areas. In late January, the FBI searched a warehouse in Fulton County, Georgia and seized boxes of ballots and other documents.
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