The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Ohio's recent cutbacks to early voting — just a day before it was scheduled to begin.
According to USA Today, the 5-4 decision handed down Monday reverses a federal appeals court ruling, and will reduce early voting from 35 to 28 days in the Buckeye State. It will also scale back some evening voting hours and one Sunday.
Cleveland.com reported that under the ruling "voters can cast a ballot on Election Day, mail an absentee ballot during a 28-day period, or vote in-person on 22 of those 28 days."
"We are gratified the United States Supreme Court has allowed Ohio's early voting law to stand," Secretary of State Jon Husted said in a statement,
according to Politico.
"I plan to implement state law and the voting schedule established by Democrats and Republicans at the local level, meaning Ohioans will have 28 days of early voting, including two Saturdays and a Sunday. Ohioans can have confidence that it remains easy to vote and hard to cheat in our state."
The suit was originally filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on the behalf of the Ohio chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, League of Women Voters, and several African-American churches. The plaintiffs argued that expanding early voting would ensure there were fewer lines on Election Day, and ensure more voter participation from minorities.
"That election [in 2004] resulted in waiting times to vote that stretched into the day after Election Day and failed to provide meaningful access to the ballot for tens of thousands of Ohio voters," they wrote. "Ohio thus comes to court with dirty hands."
Nonetheless, state attorneys argued in court that Ohio offers more opportunities to vote than 41 states, Cleveland.com reported. Others noted the 28-day schedule would keep the financial costs of elections low, and make sure voters are casting their ballot closer to Election Day, when the most information about the candidates is available.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.