The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down an effort by Democrats to restore a week of early voting in Ohio.
Ohio Democrats had petitioned the nation’s highest court to restore a week of early voting known as “Golden Week,” the only time voters can register and vote to cast a ballot in one visit. They had argued that getting rid of the week-long period disproportionately hurt black voters, and that Ohio does not offer same-day voter registration on Election Day.
A federal district court had first ruled in May that cutting the window by a week, from 35 days to two days, was “unconstitutional.”
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati then ruled in August that even without the “Golden Week,” Ohioans had “abundant” opportunities to vote within the 29-day period.
Roughly 60,000 Ohio voters cast ballots during Golden Week in 2008 and 80,000 voters cast ballots during that time in 2012.
