CLEVELAND — Are you proudly wearing your “I voted” sticker?
Have you told all your friends on social media that you've stopped by the ballot box?
While there’s nothing wrong with doing any of that, the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections is warning of one voting act that is illegal.
Don’t post a picture of your ballot with completed votes. It’s against the law.
The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections posted a warning about it on Twitter early Tuesday morning: “We love seeing all the voter pride, but know it is illegal in OH to post a picture of your voted ballot! Show your sticker instead! #vote”
It is illegal to “exhibit any ticket or ballot which the elector intends to cast,” according to Ohio Revised Code 3501.35(4).
Ohio isn't alone in considering taking a photo of a completed ballot a felony.
It's also a felony in California, but a state assemblyman introduced legislation in January that would allow California voters to legally take photos with their ballots. Even asking for voters to share pictures of themselves with their ballot is an offense punishable by a fine, imprisonment or both in the state.
Assemblyman Marc Levine, D-Calif., said his bill would repeal the crimes for taking ballot selfies, while also protecting people's privacy. The bill would prohibit people from taking unsolicited photos of other people at voting locations.
In July, a law went into effect in Indiana that banned "ballot selfies." State lawmakers created the law to prevent voter fraud.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana filed a lawsuit that said the law is unconstitutional because it violates free speech rights.
Dennis Mullen, deputy attorney general for the Indiana Attorney General's Office, had argued that the law’s intent was to maintain the integrity of the ballot by removing a tool that could be used to commit voter fraud. He offered an example wherein a voter is being coerced by either an organization or his or her peers to vote a certain way and to provide proof — such as a picture — of how he or she voted.
But in October, a judge issued a preliminary injunction preventing Indiana from enforcing the “ballot selfies law.”
Contributing: Kristine Guerra, The Indianapolis Star; Sami Gallegos, KXTV-TV, Sacramento; The Associated Press.
