CLEVELAND—The ACLU of Ohio and ACLU Voting Rights Project issued the following statement regarding comments from Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted’s announcement that he would appeal a decision by a federal district court to restore Golden Week, when voters can register to vote and cast a ballot on the same day.
“Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted’s statement that the ACLU supported the elimination of Golden Week could not be further from the truth," said ACLU of Ohio Senior Policy Director Mike Brickner. "The ACLU has always strongly opposed the elimination of Golden Week, particularly because its elimination would discriminate against African Americans. Our organization testified against cuts to Golden Week in the legislature and filed a lawsuit to restore it.”
“After protracted litigation, we entered into a settlement resulting in evening and weekend early voting hours for all Ohio counties, and the parties agreed that the settlement reflected no parties’ views about the merits of the case. Secretary Husted’s insinuation that we have actually supported the racially discriminatory elimination of Golden Week all along is appalling. We oppose all forms of voting discrimination, no matter what forms they may take.”
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