To: Frank LaRose (Ohio Secretary of State); Anthony Perlatti (Director of the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections); AND Brett Harbage (ADA Coordinator for the Ohio SOS' office)
Petition to Make Curbside Voting More Accessible in Ohio
As you know, Ohio law guarantees the right to curbside voting for those who are physically unable to enter a polling location [R.C. 3501.29(C)]. While we have seen signs erected at all of the polling locations we’ve been to, the signs themselves are not accessible.
The first issue is that the font on signs is far too small. Even an individual with no vision impairments would have difficulty seeing and reading the signs from their car. Therefore, the font size poses a challenge for both voters with disabilities and anyone who comes with them to help them vote (like a family member).
Another issue is we saw no additional signs telling people where the curbside voting would take place if they did plan to use it. It is important to provide signage with easy to follow instructions for everyone who wishes to use curbside voting so as to avoid confusion and frustration.
Here is how you can improve curbside voting signs:
- Use larger text and numbers that can easily be read from a vehicle;
- Clearly show where voters should park for curbside voting;
- Explain what voters should do next to continue the voting process;
- Add arrows, symbols, or pictures to help people understand the instructions more easily.
Since 14.4% of Ohioans are living with a disability and 16.8% to 17.9% of Ohioans are 65 or older, it is imperative that we make voting as accessible as possible, whether they choose curbside voting or another method.
There are many areas where Ohio has already made elections more accessible, such as improving the Secretary of State’s website, providing accessible parking at polling locations, and offering audio ballots. The availability of these options shows that the Secretary of State’s office and Board of Elections have it within their power to make curbside voting signs more accessible, too.
Please fix these issues before the November 3 General Election.
Thank you.
Why is this important?
Imagine your elderly parent is getting ready to vote on Election Day. They look up the address for their polling location. They know they need their voter ID, so they grab that. Since they have a disability that makes it hard to go inside the polls, they plan to use curbside voting. But when they show up to their polling location, they can't find any information on curbside voting. They want to ask a poll worker for help, but there aren't any outside. After driving around the parking lot for several minutes, they decide to give up and go home. They are extremely disappointed.
Approximately 14% of Ohioans are living with a disability and about 17% of Ohioans are 65 or older. And they're not the only groups that benefit from accessible elections. A parent with a sleeping infant in the backseat can benefit from curbside voting; college students away from home can benefit from mail-in voting; and polling locations that have plenty of room for wheelchairs also have room for strollers. Since everyone's needs are different, it's important that we make voting as accessible as possible for everyone.
This petition is open to all Ohio residents. The collected signatures will be shared with:
Approximately 14% of Ohioans are living with a disability and about 17% of Ohioans are 65 or older. And they're not the only groups that benefit from accessible elections. A parent with a sleeping infant in the backseat can benefit from curbside voting; college students away from home can benefit from mail-in voting; and polling locations that have plenty of room for wheelchairs also have room for strollers. Since everyone's needs are different, it's important that we make voting as accessible as possible for everyone.
This petition is open to all Ohio residents. The collected signatures will be shared with:
- Frank LaRose (Ohio Secretary of State)
- Anthony Perlatti (Director of the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections)
- Brett Harbage (ADA Coordinator for the Ohio SOS' office)