More trans candidates face challenges running for office in Ohio for omitting their former names
Several transgender candidates for state office in Ohio are facing challenges and even outright disqualification for omitting their deadnames from petition paperwork.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Several transgender candidates for state office in Ohio are facing challenges and even outright disqualification for omitting their former names from petition paperwork under a little-known state elections law, confronting a unique dilemma as they vie for office in increasing numbers in the face of anti-LBGTQ legislation.
Three of the four transgender candidates hoping to win Democratic seats in the Republican-dominated Ohio House and Senate have either been challenged or disqualified for not putting their former name — also called a deadname — on circulating petitions to get on the ballot. But state law mandates that candidates list any name changes in the last five years, though it isn’t in the Secretary of State’s 33-page candidate requirement guide.
Additionally, the petition paperwork does not have a place to list any former names and exempts name changes due to marriage.
Bobbie Arnold, a contractor from West Alexandria who had been certified, has her disqualification hearing before the Montgomery County Board of Elections Tuesday. Arienne Childrey, a previously certified candidate from Auglaize County hoping to run against Rep. Angie King, a Republican sponsoring anti-LGBTQ legislation, has her own disqualification hearing Thursday.
Michigan has a similar elections law, which mandates candidates list any name changes in the past decade, but it’s not clear which others states have one. The Associated Press reached out to several election experts and organizations tracking elections laws, and none were aware of how many states require candidates to disclose name changes.
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