A scheduling issue could jeopardize Pres. Joe Biden’s access to Ohio’s general election ballot in November, according to a letter sent from the legal counsel of Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose.
Paul DeSantis, chief legal counsel for LaRose, addressed the letter to Ohio Democratic Party Chair on Friday, telling her that the Democratic National Convention’s date of Aug. 19, 2024, occurs past the state’s Aug. 7 deadline to certify presidential candidates.
Democrats have been so preoccupied with trying to keep Donald Trump off various presidential ballots that they’ve forgotten to keep up with standard ballot access procedures. The Democrats backed themselves into a corner because they can’t move their convention, and now they’ll have to rely on the sympathies of Ohio Republicans. Biden was never going to win Ohio, but it is interesting to see the Democrats’ self-inflicted wounds after all they’ve done to hurt Trump’s campaign.
The GOP is trying to make a mountain out of a molehill by threatening to use a scheduling statute to keep Joe Biden off Ohio’s ballot. Since the GOP controls both the state House and Senate, Republicans could drag their feet and play dirty tricks to cause problems for the DNC. However, this could just be an example of cheap political games that will hurt the GOP in the end. Similar problems have arisen in the past, and Ohio’s legislature acted swiftly to avoid any problems in regard to ballot access. Lawmak