Today, the Ohio Senate Democrats' Campaign Team called on Republican Senator Matt Dolan (Chagrin Falls) to attend this coming Monday's Controlling Board meeting to vote on allowing return postage for absentee ballots.
Senator Dolan is a member of the powerful Controlling Board, but he does not appear to have attended a single Controlling Board meeting this year.
"Senator Dolan hasn't bothered to show up to this committee all year. He's missed at least 12 meetings so far. But we need him to start caring about his job now," said Millie Vaughan, Executive Director for the Ohio Senate Democrats.
"Hundreds of thousands of Ohioans are counting on Senator Dolan to vote for paid return postage on absentee ballots. Would he really just skip out on something that important?"
Controlling Board meeting minutes from January - July (the most recent records available) show that Dolan has been replaced at every single committee meeting by one of his Republican colleagues.
Secretary of State Frank LaRose has requested Controlling Board approval to use state dollars to pay for return postage on absentee ballots in November's election. LaRose already has the authority and the resources to pay for return postage on his own, but would prefer to use state dollars instead.
If Dolan and Ohio's Republican supermajority fail to pay for return postage, Ohioans will be forced to purchase their own stamps to mail absentee ballots back to their county Board of Elections. This is especially troubling amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has made absentee voting the only viable option for many voters this year.
The ACLU of Georgia filed a lawsuit arguing that forcing voters to pay for return postage on ballots is a poll tax.
Senator Matt Dolan is attempting to hold on to one of Ohio's most flippable Senate seats, SD 24, in suburban Cleveland.
Dolan's Democratic opponent, Tom Jackson, is well known in the district.
Tom Jackson runs a small business, is a Solon Chamber of Commerce executive, and helped elect hardworking Democrats to Solon City Council and Ohio's 6th House District.
Help replace absentee Senator Matt Dolan this November. Cuyahoga County deserves a senator who shows up.