Ohio – Joe Biden won the Ohio primary on Tuesday, in an election that had little to do with the internal race over the Democratic nomination for the White House and more with how states can hold such consultations in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.
It was the first significant test of conducting an electoral consultation by mail, in the midst of the pandemic.
There were reports of confusion but not widespread chaos. It was nothing like what happened in Wisconsin, where voters were forced to stand in line and ignore the rules of social distancing in order to cast their vote.
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“In the context of the threat posed by this virus, it is the best decision we could make,” said Republican Ken Blackwell, former Ohio director of elections and who chairs the bipartisan organization International Foundation for Election Systems.
The turnout at the polls was surprising, reported state government secretary Frank LaRose.
While his firm announced that 1.5 million votes were cast by noon Saturday – a steep decline from the 3.2 million cast in the 2016 primaries – LaRose claimed that some larger counties received tens of thousands of additional patterns on Tuesday. .
“It was much better than normal. It was great,” he said.
The primary, originally planned for March 17, was postponed just hours before the polls opened. Due to the “health emergency,” Republican Governor Mike DeWine recommended not to vote in person before June 2. After several legal challenges, the authorities decided to carry out the consultation on Tuesday, but by mail.
Most Ohioans had to mail three envelopes: one application, the blank ballot, and the completed ballot. Initially, only the disabled and homeless were asked to vote in person, although if someone did not receive their ballot in the mail on time, they could go in person as well.
Lynne Marshall, a Sylvania resident, was disappointed to find that her ballot had not arrived in time to vote by mail and was distressingly weighing in person at a polling place.
“What should I do?” he asked himself.
“I am really upset about all this, but I will feel bad if I don’t vote,” she added.
