Three of Ohio’s Trans Candidates Will Remain on Ballot
The Associated Press, the Mercer County Board of Elections chose not to disqualify Arienne Childrey, a Democrat from St. Mary’s, Ohio, whose candidacy for the 84th District seat in the Ohio House of Representatives was challenged after Mercer County Republican Party Chairman Robert Hibner filed a protest with the elections board.Hibner argued that Childrey had violated a little-publicized state law requiring public office candidates to list any name changes they have had over the previous five years on their election paperwork.The law contains some exceptions, including for those who change names after marrying or those running for re-election, having previously been elected by voters under their new name.While the law was not intended to address transgender existence, it has since been weaponized against transgender candidates.
However, the law is not listed in the 33-page candidate requirement guide from the Ohio Secretary of State’s office, and there is no space to list any previous names on the paperwork for petition signatures, which candidates must collect from a certain number of registered voters to qualify for ballot status.Childrey previously told NBC News that while she disagreed with having to provide her deadname, which does not reflect her identity, she would have done so had she known of the name-change requirement.The Mercer County Board of Elections unanimously rejected Hibner’s protest, ruling that, since the ballot is for the upcoming March 19 primary, Hibner, as a member of an opposing party, has no standing and his demand that Childrey be disqualified from the ballot is invalid.If Childrey wins the Democratic primary, as expected, she’ll automatically appear on the general election ballot as the party’s nominee.“I do believe that this was primarily an opportunistic attempt to seize on a relatively obscure law,” Childrey told Metro Weekly in a brief interview. “This attempt was motivated because I am a trans person running for office and have.
