Ohio Governor Mike DeWine called for a special session of the Ohio state Legislature on May 23, 2024, to address the issue of getting both President Joe Biden and former President Trump on the state's fall ballot. The Democratic National Convention took place after Ohio's deadline for certifying presidential candidates, leaving Democrats unable to meet this requirement for Biden. DeWine expressed his frustration with the situation, stating that it was unacceptable for the sitting president of the United States to be excluded from the ballot in Ohio.
The purpose of the special session was to pass legislation ensuring that both major party presidential candidates would be on the Ohio ballot in November. Additionally, legislation prohibiting campaign spending by foreign nationals was also passed during this session.
Ohio Republicans had proposed different solutions to address the issue. Senate Republicans took an existing childcare campaign fund bill and included a one-time legislative fix that changed the timeline for Democrats to certify their candidate from 90 days before the election to 74 days. However, this bill also included a provision banning foreign nationals from contributing money to ballot campaign initiatives, which drew opposition from Democrats.
State House Republicans instead pursued a clean bill that would have permanently changed the certification deadline. While Senate Republicans passed their solution, House Republicans did not take it up for a vote. Both parties were confident that Biden would be on the ballot in November, though the path forward became more uncertain.
The issue of getting Biden on the Ohio ballot was not unique to this election cycle. In 2020, then-President Donald Trump won Ohio with about 53.3% of the votes compared to Biden's 45.2%. Four years earlier, Trump won with 51.8% to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's 43.7%. President Barack Obama was the last Democratic presidential nominee to win Ohio in 2012.
The special session was applauded by the Senate GOP caucus, who encouraged Speaker and Minority Leader to allow a vote on House Bill 114, which did both. However, Democrats were not pleased with this solution and may have considered court action or other workarounds to ensure Biden's inclusion on the ballot.
