DeWine OKs photo ID requirement, other election restrictions

By JULIE CARR SMYTH
Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has signed into law a requirement that all Ohioans show photo ID to vote. The new mandate is part of package of election law changes the governor signed Friday, after it was sent to him by the GOP-led Legislature. The new law also shrinks the windows for mail-in ballots to be counted and for curing provisional ballots, and eliminates a day of early voting. Their backers say the changes further protect against fraud — already rare — and speed up vote counting that’s been more closely scrutinized since 2020. Opponents call the changes cumbersome and unnecessary.