Here’s everything voters need to know ahead of casting a ballot:
Voting options
There will be no voting at election board offices on Monday, but voters who want to cast their ballots in person can do so at their assigned polling locations on Tuesday. Voters can find their polling locations at VoterLookup.OhioSoS.gov or through their election board’s website.
Voters who received an absentee ballot from their election board have until Monday to mail it. Ballots need to be postmarked by Monday, Nov. 3. Ballots sent to election boards by mail will need to arrive by Saturday, Nov. 8.
If voters have a filled-out ballot and miss this mail-in deadline, they can drop off the ballot in person at the election board office or at their county ballot drop box. The board of elections must receive these ballots no later than 7:30 p.m. on Election Day.
What you need to vote
Voters wanting to cast a ballot in person should ensure they bring an unexpired photo ID to the polls to comply with Ohio’s voter ID law.
Valid forms of identification include an Ohio driver’s license, a U.S. passport or passport card, a state of Ohio ID card, an interim ID form issued by the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, a U.S. military ID card, an Ohio National Guard ID card, or a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ID card.
All ID cards must be unexpired, have a photograph of the voter and include the voter’s name as it appears on the poll list.
People who show up to vote in-person who lack the proper ID are asked to vote provisionally. They must return to their election board office with a valid photo ID by Saturday, Nov. 8 to have their vote counted.
Ohio state ID cards are free to people 17 and older. In order to obtain a state ID card, applicants must provide proof of their full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, citizenship and Ohio street address.
Local leadership
In Clark County, there will be a few contested races among school boards as incumbents face new challengers in multiple districts.
The Springfield City Schools Board of Education race will see Carol Dunlap, the board president, and Stephanie Stephens seek reelection. They are joined on the ballot by challenger Susan Samuels.
Northwestern Local Schools’ school board will see six candidates run for three seats. Candidates include incumbent Kevin Macy and challengers Jordan Daniels, Seth Evans, Samantha Hart, Brenda Kaffenbarger and George White.
Another six candidates will compete for three seats on the Greenon Local School District Board of Education — incumbents Keith Culp and Stacey Hundley and challengers Joe Mamer, Diana S. McCubbin, Timothy Munch and Noah Clark Staggs.
And four candidates will compete for three seats on the Northeastern Local School District Board of Education: incumbents Jeff Collins and Jeff Yinger and challengers Molly Kraus and Katie Krupp.
But few other races are contested this election. Candidates Ryan Ruf and David Nangle are both running against incumbents Dan Detrick and John Roeder for their seats on Springfield Twp. board of trustees.
Tax issues
Countywide, voters will also be considering a levy that would increase the county sales tax in order to fund a new jail and safety building. Clark County’s current sales tax is 7.25%, which includes the state sales tax of 5.75% and the county sales tax of 1.5%.
This ballot measure would increase the sales tax to 7.75%. The jail, in 2024, was found to be noncompliant with 14 state standards, 10 of which had to do with the jail’s current infrastructure.
Additionally, Clark County voters will consider a replacement 0.6-mill levy for the Clark County Park District, which would maintain safe trails, clean spaces and programs for all ages, at the cost of a slight tax increase for property owners. The levy would collect $1.9 million annually and cost $21 per each $100,000 of appraised home value, according to the Clark County Auditor’s Office.
Springfield and New Carlisle voters will also be asked to consider charter amendments for their respective cities.
Springfield voters will decide whether to allow changes to staffing of safety forces. The proposal is a change to the city’s charter to allow lateral entry in the Springfield Fire Rescue Division and to designate all positions in the police division above the rank of lieutenant as unclassified.
The city is asking for these changes to help with recruiting people to those positions.
In New Carlisle, voters will decide whether city council should pass legislation to allow city employees and officials “to carry firearms while conducting city business.” The council can then vote on the legislation once they know where citizens stand on the issue.
Lower, slower voter turnout
Elections that follow a presidential or gubernatorial year typically see turnout percentages of registered voters in the high teens or low 20s, except in some communities with controversial tax issues.
According to the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office, nearly 160,000 voters turned in their ballots or voted early in person one week out from the election. That includes tens of thousands of voters in southwest Ohio.
Ohio has roughly 8 million registered voters.
