Voters in Lake and Summit counties can get free bus rides to vote in the August special election. The hope is to make voting more accessible.
August elections were eliminated in 2021 due to chronically low voter turnout, but Republicans in the Ohio Statehouse brought them back for voters to weigh in on a controversial issue. Issue 1 is the only issue on the ballot and would change the threshold to amend the state constitution from a simple majority to 60% of voters. Republican lawmakers who back the issue say raising the threshold will stop outside influence from amending the state constitution and could stop the possible reproductive rights amendment voters could see on the ballot in November. Issue 1 has received millions of dollars in support from an Illinois billionaire. Bipartisan opposition say raising the threshold is antidemocratic and would take away the power of voters.
Some local transit agencies are working to ensure residents have equitable access to vote in this election.
"We know that sometimes people don't have a car or a polling place in walking distance," Akron METRO RTA's public relations specialist Stephanie Fairchild said, "so we just want to help kind of eliminate that barrier between transportation and someone's right to vote."
Akron METRO RTA has offered free bus rides for general elections since 2018, but this is the first time the transit authority will be offering free rides for a special election. Fairchild hopes the service will drum up voter engagement on Election Day.
“Our goal is to make sure the community as a whole is represented at the polls," Fairchild said. "I know that a lot of people probably don’t even know that there’s an election in August this year.”
Laketran has offered free rides to vote in every election for almost a decade, including the election on August 8.
"We actually had a rider call and ask us if we were doing it for this election," Director of Communications Julia Schick said, "and we said, 'Why wouldn't we?'"
Riders who want to vote early at the board of elections can also ride for free, which Schick said helps a lot of seniors and people with disabilities.
“We just want everybody to have access to vote," Schick said.
To ride free to the polls, Lake County riders must simply tell the driver they are going to vote.
“If you’re on a fixed route bus and you want to take a bus up to the board of elections to vote early or if you want to take a bus to your polling location on Election Day, you simply have to tell the driver that you’re voting that day or you just voted, and they’ll mark your trip as free," Schick explained.
Akron METRO RTA is waiving all fares for riders on August 8.
