Opinion ID: 183767
Heading Depth: 6
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Voter Dilution

Text: At oral argument, the Board raised the issue of voter dilution. Amicus ORP also raised the issue, arguing that the counting of provisional ballots cast in the wrong precinct because of poll worker error ... harms every Hamilton County voter who cast a legal vote in the correct precinct. ORP 2d Amicus Br. at 21-22. According to ORP, these votes were cast in violation of Ohio law, and to include such votes among the rest of the votes will dilute the power of those other, valid votes. Id. at 22 (citing Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, 555, 84 S.Ct. 1362, 12 L.Ed.2d 506 (1964)). But the issue of vote dilution turns, first, on whether unlawful votes have been counted. See Purcell, 549 U.S. at 4, 127 S.Ct. 5 (discussing dilution caused by voter fraud). Invalidating ballots cast in the wrong precinct relies on Painter's statement of state law that such votes may not be counted under Ohio law regardless of poll-worker error. We do not resolve the question of whether refusal to count votes miscast solely due to poll-worker error violates due process. Therefore, we do not presume that invalidating such votes complies with the Constitution. Furthermore, any compelling state interest in preventing the counting of invalid votes must be weighed against the voters' strong interest in exercising the fundamental political right to vote, Purcell, 549 U.S. at 4, 127 S.Ct. 5 (internal quotation marks omitted), the very right at issue in this case. In sum, the Board was required to review all provisional ballots. In doing so, it chose to consider evidence of poll-worker error for some ballots, but not others, thereby treating voters' ballots arbitrarily, in violation of the Equal Protection Clause. We therefore conclude that there is a strong likelihood of success on this equal-protection claim which weighs heavily in favor of the district court's grant of a preliminary injunction.