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President Joe Biden received a warning about whether he will appear on the ballot in Ohio for the presidential election.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican, on Tuesday sent a letter to the state Democratic Party warning that Biden may not make the ballot due to a conflict surrounding the timing of the Democratic National Convention (DNC).
Ohio law requires presidential candidates to be officially nominated 90 days before the general election, which this year would be August 7. However, the DNC is scheduled for August 19 to 22—more than a week after the cutoff. That means that unless Ohio lawmakers take action to waive the deadline, the law would not allow Biden to make the ballot, LaRose warned.
Similar conflicts have arisen in previous elections, with the Legislature waiving the requirement for the 2012 and 2020 elections. However, the Legislature does not appear poised to waive the requirement for Democrats in 2024, LaRose warned.
On Tuesday, Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens, a Republican, told reporters that "there's just not the will to do that from the Legislature," according to the Ohio Capital Journal.
LaRose wrote that he would be "duty-bound" to instruct the Board of Elections to begin preparing ballots that do not include Biden if the conflict is not resolved.
"Let me be clear that this is not an action I wish to take, as I believe it to be in the best interest of Ohio voters to have a choice between at least the two major party candidates for the nation's highest political office," he wrote.
"Unfortunately, however, the Ohio House of Representatives has refused to act, and the Democratic Party has so far offered no legally acceptable remedy."
Democrats have offered to submit a "provisional certification" by the deadline, but the attorney general's office said that would not be enough to comply with state law, LaRose wrote.
While Ohio is not viewed as particularly competitive on the presidential level, Biden not appearing on the ballot could potentially complicate more competitive races for Democrats.
Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown is facing a challenge from Republican Bernie Moreno, and the race is viewed as one of the most competitive Senate races across the country and could determine which party controls the Senate next year.
Ohio also is home to two seats in the House of Representatives classified as toss-ups by the Cook Political Report. The seats include the 9th Congressional District, held by Democrat Marcy Kaptur, and the 13th Congressional District, held by Democrat Emilia Sykes.
Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is viewed as the favorite in Ohio, as he won the Buckeye State in 2016 and 2020. However, the state backed Brown's 2018 Senate campaign.
Former President Barack Obama won the state as recently as 2012, though shifts among rural votes toward Republicans has made it more difficult for Democrats to win the state.
Ohio is worth 17 Electoral College votes.
Governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, said on Tuesday he has "every confidence" a solution will be reached to ensure Biden will make it on the ballot, reported Cleveland television news station WKYC.
"No one should worry, they're going to be able to vote for the president or the former president, whoever they want to vote for," he said. "You know, this is not going to be a situation where the president's name is not on the ballot. So it's either going to be done by the court, or it's going to be done by the Legislature."
Newsweek reached out to the Biden campaign and the Democratic National Committee for comment via email.
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About the writer
Andrew Stanton is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in Maine. His role is reporting on U.S. politics and social issues. ... Read more