Foreclosures could snarl election

COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 6 (UPI) -- The thousands of Ohio voters who have moved because they lost their homes to foreclosure could cause an election snag come November, experts say.

Although federal law ensures most still will be able to cast a ballot Nov. 4, voters with outdated addresses risk pre-election challenges and trips from polling place to polling place, the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch reported Sunday.

Voters with out-dated addresses could also be forced to cast provisional ballots that might not be counted.

"It's a real issue," said Daniel Tokaji, an Ohio State University law professor.

In Columbus, Ohio, alone, nearly 3,700 people are registered to vote at addresses the city lists as vacant.

Nathaniel Persily, a law professor at Columbia University, said Ohio is stricter than most states in using outdated registrations as grounds for disqualifying voters.

Franklin County Republican Party Chairman Doug Preisse didn't rule out voter challenges before Nov. 4.

He said the GOP wants "clean, accurate voter lists" and remains suspicious of groups such as ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, whose paid voter registration workers were accused in 2004 and 2006 of submitting bogus names.