What Erie County voters need to know for the November 7 election

ERIE COUNTY – The general election is today. Here is an overview of what Erie County voters need to know about how to vote and what’s going to be on the ballot in this election.

Where to vote?

Finding a polling place is a quick process. All a voter needs to do is type their address into the Erie County Board of Elections’ polling location search, and their polling place will be listed.

When are the polls open?

6:30AM to 7:30PM.

What is needed?

A form of valid identification is now required to vote in Ohio. Valid ID includes an Ohio driver’s license, State of Ohio ID card, Interim ID form issued by the Ohio BMV, US passport, US passport card, US military ID card, Ohio National Guard ID card, or US Department of Veterans Affairs ID card.

What’s on the ballot?

Two statewide issues, Issue 1 and Issue 2, will be on the ballot this election.

Issue 1, if approved, would establish a state constitutional right to “make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions,” which includes decisions about abortion, contraception, fertility treatment, miscarriage care, and continuing a pregnancy. Since June 2022, following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, most abortions have been banned in Ohio. Under the issue, an abortion could be overturned until a physician determines an unborn child to be “viable,” and abortions would always be legal if the mother’s life or health was at risk.

Supporters of Issue 1 claim that it would ensure that “people can make the decisions that are best for them and their families” and protect “patients and families from extreme abortion bans.” On the other hand, opponents say Issue 1 would allow “for-profit abortion providers…to self-regulate and perform abortions up to viability and beyond at the sole discretion of the abortionist” and prevent “parents from being involved in their child’s medical decisions, like an abortion or irreversible sex-change operations.”

Issue 2 would “commercialize, regulate, legalize, and tax the adult use of cannabis.” If approved, the sale and use of cannabis by adults at least twenty-one years of age would be legalized and an organization would be created to regulate the new industry.

Supporters of Issue 2 say it would “regulate marijuana like alcohol” and, as a result, would “generate new tax revenue” and “end the black market” on marijuana, while opponents say it would “[legalize] an addiction-for-profit industry at the expense of [Ohio] families and [pose] substantial risks to the public health and safety of all Ohioans, especially children and adolescents, given marijuana’s high potential for abuse.”

More information about these issues can be found here.

Also on the ballot are several local issues, mostly tax levies. However, Issue 9 in the village of Milan would allow liquor sales at Jim’s Pizza Box and Issue 10 would allow liquor sales at the restaurant on Sundays; and Issue 13 in the city of Huron would create “a Charter Review Commission…to periodically review the Charter and recommend alterations, revisions and amendments.”

A full list of local issues in Erie County can be found here.

Along with these issues, several seats on local city or village councils, school boards, and townships will be up for election.

A full list of candidates running for these seats can be found here.

This article was written by Nate Hinners. Contact Nate at nhinners@huroninsider.com.