Secretary of State Frank LaRose invites feds to look at Ohio’s voter data

Come and take a look at our data!

That was the message from Ohio elections officials to the U.S. Department of Justice as it steps up its efforts to review state voter rolls in advance of the 2026 midterms.

“Ohio’s voter registration database is extremely transparent,” Ben Kindel, spokesman for Secretary of State Frank LaRose, told Cleveland.com. “Anyone, including the Department of Justice, can easily access it free of charge on our website.”

Kindel told the publication that Ohio officials have spoken with representatives of the Trump Administration and at federal agencies, including the DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security, “who share our commitment to robust list maintenance and clean voter rolls.”

“Ohio’s process is among the best in the nation and an example for others,” Kindel told Cleveland.com.

The Associated Press reported that the feds have contacted several states recently. Kindel did not tell Cleveland.com whether the feds had requested “voter data or details about how Ohio runs its elections.”

On Wednesday, LaRose announced the release of the latest iteration of the Ohio Election Official Manual, which features simplified language, clearer explanations of complex procedures, checklists, and charts to illustrate key concepts. The office issues the statewide resource annually, providing details on administering the state’s elections, which officials said helps Ohio’s 88 county boards of elections perform their duties.

“Election officials are on the front lines of democracy, and they deserve the best tools we can give them,” LaRose said in a release. “This updated manual makes it easier for boards of elections to do their jobs with clarity and confidence, while also empowering the public to better understand how Ohio elections are run. It’s another step in making our elections more transparent and more trusted.

“With each improvement, from readiness plans to mentorship to real-time data, we’re helping Ohioans see what we see: a system that’s well-run, constantly improving, and worthy of their trust,” LaRose added.

Elections remain a hot-button issue in Ohio, as it is across the country.

Last month, LaRose issued Directive 2025-31, a new statewide directive ordering election officials to start the next phase of auditing Ohio’s voter rolls for “accuracy and integrity.” The state is working to remove outdated or abandoned registrations eligible for removal by 2029.

“Ohio has one of the most efficient and effective voter list maintenance programs in the country,” LaRose said in a release. “Members of the U.S. House Committee on Administration, which helps to oversee our election laws, have been citing Ohio’s voter registration integrity efforts as a model for the nation, and it’s one that’s been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. We’ve created a process that’s very transparent so Ohioans can have absolute confidence in the integrity of our elections.”

State law mandates that the secretary of state and all 88 county boards of elections regularly “verify the accuracy of the information in the statewide voter registration database.” Last year, the secretary of state’s new Office of Data Analytics and Archives custom-built “a data integrity tool designed to help county boards of elections maintain accurate voter registration records and solve identified discrepancies,” according to a news release.

Meanwhile, a pair of House Democrats propose that the state establish and maintain a list of voters who want to permanently cast absentee ballots.

Additionally, a new Ohio Election Integrity Commission is set to replace the Ohio Elections Commission by Jan. 1. The change was made thanks to a provision in the state’s two-year budget, an amended version of House Bill 96, which eliminated the half-century-old commission.