Voters in Ohio may soon have to fork over thousands of dollars to keep polls open late

Ohio primary voting may cost extra dollars. — (Image credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images)

Ohio is poised to become the first state in the U.S. that actually might make its voters pay out of their own pockets to extend voting hours. On Wednesday, lawmakers approved a bill that would require voters to post a cash bond if they want polling hours extended past the normal cutoff time. Typically, voters submit these sorts of requests to the court if some unforeseen emergency — be it a natural disaster or a power outage — interrupts voting during scheduled hours.

Ohio State Sen. Bill Seitz (R) says the new bill would help cover the costs of keeping polls open later than normal. "Sadly, in both the November 2015 and March 2016 elections, rogue courts in Hamilton County issued orders extending polling hours," Seitz wrote in an op-ed this week. "These orders cost Hamilton County taxpayers $57,000, and forced the inside poll workers to stay around for an extra 60 to 90 minutes after already working a 14-hour day."

Those opposed to the bill argue the extensions weren't exactly requested without reason, however. In November 2015, a software glitch in newly installed systems caused some voters to be turned away without casting a ballot, while in March 2016, a car accident blocked off a main thoroughfare and left many voters stranded on the road during election day. "I think it's unconstitutional," Ohio State Rep. Kathleen Clyde (D) told Think Progress about the bond bill. "It's tantamount to a poll tax to require voters to post a cash bond, and we really need to have the ability to petition state or federal courts if there is some type of emergency necessitating the extension of polling hours."