Secure Elections: Ohio Secretary of State Candidates Speak About Their Priorities

Ohio has many crucial statewide elections this year, including the race for secretary of state. The top two candidates for the job have different views on secure elections in the Buckeye State.

This November, Treasurer Robert Sprague, the Republican nominee, is running against state Rep. Allison Russo, the Democrat.

Sprague is focused on election integrity and ensuring that only American citizens can register to vote. Russo says Ohio elections are secure and that Republicans use the issue to suppress minority voters.

In an interview with the Daily Signal, Sprague contrasted Ohio and New Jersey, where last month it was revealed that more than 6,600 noncitizens had been registered to vote. Sprague called the situation, including the response from New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, “concerning.”

“Look, we’re commonsense Midwesterners. We want to have good elections, and the way that you have good elections is to have secure elections. And you want to have good systems and secure systems that people can trust,” he said.

That’s why Ohio passed Issue 2 four years ago with nearly 77% of the vote, he added, noting that the ballot initiative amended the state constitution to allow only American citizens to vote in Ohio elections. His opponent, Russo, voted against it.

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“There’s a few things that you own as a state representative, and one of them is your vote,” Sprague said. “I don’t think [voting by noncitizens] should be up for debate.”

Russo on Elections

In a statement to the Daily Signal, Russo noted that noncitizen voting “is and has been illegal for decades.”

“Republicans love to bury restrictions for legal voters in these bills so that no one notices,” she said. “I will always stand up for the right of every eligible voter to have their voice heard and their vote counted in fair, free, and secure elections.”

“[Sprague is] an election denier who wants to make voting inconvenient for eligible voters so that his political cronies remain unaccountable to everyday Ohioans,” Russo said.

She added that her Republican opponent “proves over and over again that he will continue to use this office for partisan games and political theater that disrespects Ohio voters and election workers.”

Other Election Security Issues

Sprague said he supports multiple election security measures, such as requiring photo ID for in-person voting and mail-in ballots, as well as getting rid of ballot harvesting drop boxes.

Ohio already has voter ID for in-person voting. However, this November, Ohioans have an opportunity to enshrine it in the state constitution by voting on Issue 3. In June, Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed legislation that would have required ID for mail-in ballots.

Sprague said he believes Issue 3 will pass “overwhelmingly” in November.

“It’s not just about policy, it’s about permanence,” Sprague said. “You put the most important things in the state constitution, and this is incredibly important, and then it can’t be removed unless you have a vote of the people.”

Election integrity has been a top issue for other Ohio Republicans this year. Gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy pushed for voter ID in May, and state Sen. Jane Timken sponsored a resolution on the same issue.

One issue Sprague worries about is Russo’s support of automatic voter registration, which she backed in 2020. He said the policy is concerning to him because “it doesn’t even need to go to the Legislature.”

While Ohioans will be making up their minds between now and Nov. 3, Heritage Action State Director Hilary Jackson called Sprague “the clear best choice for the secretary of state.”

“He has proven to conservatives time and time again that he will uphold the values and principles that we hold so dear, especially when it comes to election integrity,” she said. “Allison Russo on the other hand, would only be a pawn of the Democratic socialist party used to destroy our constitutional republic.”

The past two secretaries of state—Frank LaRose and current Sen. Jon Husted—have both been Republicans. Jennifer Brunner was the last Democrat elected to the position in 2006.