Ohio
Ohio sent absentee ballot applications to registered voters. What you need to know
Ohioans can start requesting absentee ballots for the Nov. 5 election.
Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office mailed ballot applications this week to the state’s nearly 8 million registered voters, a standard practice for even-year elections. While the presidential race has grabbed much of the attention, Ohio voters will also decide local issues and candidates, state legislative races, State Issue 1, congressional races and who holds a competitive U.S. Senate seat.
LaRose urged voters to watch out for absentee ballot forms issued by third-party organizations, rather than the state of Ohio. A sweeping election law enacted in 2023 requires Ohioans to complete a state-issued application if they want to vote by mail, which caused some hiccups during last year’s August special election.
Click here to see what the secretary of state’s mailer looks like.
“As various groups and campaigns ramp up their communication with voters, every Ohioan should be vigilant when completing any forms that are not labeled official election mail or from Ohio’s trusted source for election information, voteohio.gov,” LaRose said.
How do I vote absentee in Ohio?
Mail-in voting for the November election begins Oct. 8. To request a ballot, you must fill out the state form and provide a copy of your photo ID, driver’s license number or the last four digits of your Social Security number.
Absentee ballot applications are due by Oct. 29. Mailed absentee ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 4 and received by county boards of elections no later than Nov. 9 to be counted.
Voters can also bring the completed ballot to their local board before polls close on election night.
You can track your absentee ballot at voteohio.gov/track.
I didn’t get an absentee ballot application. What should I do?
Ohioans who don’t receive an absentee ballot application should check their voter registration status at voterlookup.ohiosos.gov.
You can also download the form at voteohio.gov.
How do I register to vote in Ohio?
Ohioans can register to vote online at olvr.ohiosos.gov or mail a form to their county board of elections. In-person registration is available at boards of elections, BMV locations, public libraries and several other locations.
You’ll need to provide:
- Name
- Address
- Date of birth
- Either 1) Your Ohio driver’s license or state ID number or 2) The last four digits of your Social Security number.
Voters must be U.S. citizens, age 18 or older and residents of Ohio for at least 30 days before the election.
The deadline to register for the November election is Oct. 7.
Haley BeMiller is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
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Ohio
Want to see Ohio State football in 2024? Here’s how to buy tickets
It’s officially college football season in Columbus.
Ohio State, which begins the season as the No. 2 team in the country according to both the preseason Associated Press poll and the US LBM preseason football coaches poll, will open the 2024 campaign at Ohio Stadium Saturday against Akron. Ohio State will kick off against the Zips at 3:30 p.m. on CBS.
Ohio State has eight home games this season, including meetings with No. 25 Iowa and No. 9 Michigan. The Buckeyes also have meetings with No. 3 Oregon and No. 8 Penn State on the road in 2024.
Want to attend an Ohio State game either at Ohio Stadium or on the road in 2024? Here’s what to know:
See Ohio State ticket prices for every game this season
Is Ohio State still selling football tickets?
Ohio State still has a three-game mini plan available for as low as $185. Fans can pick to attend either Akron or Marshall, Western Michigan or Indiana, and Iowa, Nebraska or Purdue. More information about the three-game mini plan can be found here.
Ohio State season tickets: How much are resale OSU tickets?
Season ticket packages remain on sale through StubHub. Fans can purchase packages for each of Ohio State’s eight home games, including meetings with No. 25 Iowa and No. 9 Michigan, starting at $999 in C deck, and $1,332 for B deck.
Note: Tickets were available as of 10 p.m. Aug. 27
Ohio State football tickets for each 2024 game
Here’s a look at the starting resale ticket price for each Ohio State football game in 2024.
Note: Tickets were available as of 9:30 p.m. Aug. 27
- Aug. 31: Ohio State vs. Akron; $29
- Sept. 7: Ohio State vs. Western Michigan; $32
- Sept. 21: Ohio State vs. Marshall; $48
- Sept. 28: Ohio State at Michigan State; $110
- Oct. 5: Ohio State vs. Iowa; $88
- Oct. 12: Ohio State at Oregon; $285
- Oct. 26: Ohio State vs. Nebraska; $67
- Nov. 2: Ohio State at Penn State; $180
- Nov. 9: Ohio State vs. Purdue; $50
- Nov. 16: Ohio State at Northwestern; $125
- Nov. 23: Ohio State vs. Indiana; $48
- Nov. 30: Ohio State vs. Michigan; $410
We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.
Get more Ohio State football news by listening to our podcasts
Ohio
Ohio inmates whip up five-course meal from prison garden for 60 community members
![Ohio inmates whip up five-course meal from prison garden for 60 community members Ohio inmates whip up five-course meal from prison garden for 60 community members](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/08/ohio-prison-holds-first-ever-88390187.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024)
Michelin star from behind bars?
Inmates at an Ohio prison with a penchant for cooking whipped up a five-course meal over the weekend and served it to members of the public in a first for the state.
Almost 60 people dined in the Grafton Correctional Institution’s garden space, where the very fruits and vegetables they were munching on for the groundbreaking meal were grown by prisoners.
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction
The unique experience was made possible thanks to the prison’s EDWINS Leadership and Restaurant Institute, which offers six-month culinary courses to incarcerated people at 652 prisons and jails around the country, setting them up with the skills and certifications needed to work in a fine dining establishment.
Founder Chef Brandon Crostowski said the program was born out of the belief that “every human being, regardless of their past, has the right to a fair and equal future” — an ideal that was felt by all for the momentous meal.
“They’re not looking at me as a number. They’re looking at me as a person,” Greg Sigelmier, 40, an inmate at GCI, told the Associated Press.
A long rectangular table adorned with a white linen cloth, bouquets of flowers and fresh bread was placed between the two gardens, dubbed the “EDWINS’ Garden” and the “Hope City Garden.”
Guests from the local community were offered a beet salad with goat cheese and greens to start, followed by a kale “purse” with farmer cheese.
Next, they were treated to roasted salmon topped with a béarnaise sauce and braised garden greens. Roasted lamb with tomato provencal followed.
Dessert included a corn cake with blueberry compote and Chantilly cream.
Each course was paired with a mocktail, one of them named the “botinique” — soda with a thyme-infused honey syrup and lemon.
Almost all the bites were grown in the prison garden.
“Working together as the community that we are and at the end getting to eat the food, it’s the best part. You should see the faces on these guys when they’re eating just the regular chicken noodle soup that we just all worked together. It’s incredible,” 28-year-old Efrain Paniagua-Villa said.
Cooking was not foreign to Paniagua-Villa — he routinely made meals with his mom and sister before his incarceration — but the task has served as a fruitful pastime.
He said cooking with EDWINS has helped fill the gap that was left when he began his stint in prison 2 1/2 years ago.
The incarcerated men in the EDWINS culinary program at GCI are serving a variety of sentences from short to life and range in age from 20 to 70, according to the organization.
Some of the men will have the opportunity to graduate from the program and apply to work at many restaurants in the Cleveland area upon their release.
“Many of our guys that live here are going home, so they’re going home to be our neighbors. We want our neighbors to be prepared to be law-abiding citizens, and that’s what this program is about. It’s not just about teaching guys how to cook or how to prepare food,” said GCI warden Jerry Spatny. “
This gives them reentry level skills so that when they go home, they can be successful in that environment.”
Ohio
Projecting Ohio State’s Week 1 depth chart: Jeremiah Smith starting, O-line clarity and more
![Projecting Ohio State’s Week 1 depth chart: Jeremiah Smith starting, O-line clarity and more Projecting Ohio State’s Week 1 depth chart: Jeremiah Smith starting, O-line clarity and more](https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2024/08/27163742/USATSI_22714898-scaled.jpg)
Ohio State coach Ryan Day brought some clarity Tuesday to what the depth chart might look like when the Buckeyes take the field on Saturday afternoon.
He announced that Tegra Tshabola will start at right guard, although the Buckeyes will roll players along the line in the season opener against Akron. Day also said that Sonny Styles will start at will linebacker, beating out C.J. Hicks, but Ohio State expects Hicks to play major snaps this season.
And there’s also a piece of expected news that nevertheless is worth emphasizing: Breakout offseason star Jeremiah Smith, the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2024, is slated to start right away at wide receiver.
Here’s our prediction of what the depth chart will look like in Week 1:
Quarterback
Starter: Will Howard
Backup: Devin Brown
Howard was named the starter on Aug. 16, but Day noted on Tuesday that Brown will get the backup reps against Akron. Brown apparently beat out freshman Julian Sayin and redshirt freshman Lincoln Kienholz to be second-team QB. Saturday’s game will be Howard’s to win, though, and Brown is expected to get some snaps.
GO DEEPER
Ryan Day made the right choice — the obvious choice — naming Will Howard QB1
Running back
Starter: TreVeyon Henderson
Backup: Quinshon Judkins
Day said that position coach Carlos Locklyn hasn’t decided which running back will start, but both Henderson and Judkins will play. In reality, it doesn’t matter who takes the first snap, because both will play a lot. Day said they haven’t figured out what that snap count will look like, but there is a minimum number they want to get for both running backs. That carry number could look different week to week, but we should get a first look at how they play together Saturday.
Wide receiver
Starter: Emeka Egbuka, Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate
Backup: Brandon Inniss, Bryson Rodgers and Jayden Ballard
Day has tried to keep the Jeremiah Smith hype down all summer, but it’s been hard to watch the former top-ranked recruit and not see how good he is. On Tuesday, Day finally went on record and said that Smith will start on Saturday, alongside Egbuka and Tate. The Smith hype could explode with a big day against the Zips.
![go-deeper](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=128,height=128,fit=cover,format=auto/app/uploads/2024/07/23182949/GettyImages-1813454940-1024x683.jpg)
GO DEEPER
Emeka Egbuka shouldn’t be Ohio State’s forgotten star. He’s ready to lead
Tight end
Starter: Will Kacmarek
Backup: Gee Scott Jr.
Day didn’t touch on tight ends on Tuesday, but it appears Kacmarek and Scott will be the top two. I’m leaning toward Kacmarek as the starter, because of his blocking prowess, but also his additional growth as a route runner. Scott will play often, as well. The biggest question going into Week 1 is whether Jelani Thurman will get key game reps, or see more time in a backup position.
Offensive line
Starters: Left tackle Josh Simmons, left guard Donovan Jackson, center Seth McLaughlin, right guard Tegra Tshaboloa and right tackle Josh Fryar.
Backup: Left tackle George Fitzpatrick, left guard Austin Siereveld, center Carson Hinzman, right guard Luke Montgomery and right tackle Zen Michalski
The offensive line seems to be in a better position than it was before preseason camp, and Day credited that to the sickness that hit the position group. That forced Ohio State to go deeper into the lineup, and it resulted in more confidence. Tshabola was the right choice at right guard, as his athleticism should work well with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly’s run game.
Defensive ends
Starter: JT Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer
Backup: Kenyatta Jackson Jr., and Caden Curry
Tuimoloau, Sawyer, Jackson and Curry have been the top four defensive linemen since last season. Mitchell Melton is a player to watch, because he’s the fifth guy on the list, but how many snaps he gets will be the question.
![go-deeper](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=128,height=128,fit=cover,format=auto/app/uploads/2024/08/17141732/0820_osu_prospectus-1024x683.jpg)
GO DEEPER
Is it national title or bust for Ohio State? Ryan Day, Buckeyes ‘know what’s at stake’
Defensive tackles
Starter: Tyleik Williams and Ty Hamilton
Backup: Hero Kanu and Kayden McDonald
McDonald had a great offseason and really solidified himself as the second-team 3-tech defensive tackle. Jason Moore and Tywone Malone Jr. are two other players who could crack the rotation with a strong first month of the season.
Mike linebacker
Starter: Cody Simon
Backup: Arvell Reese
Reese made one of the biggest jumps of anybody during camp. The staff has raved about him, and I expect we’ll see more of him this season than we expected coming into camp. Gabe Powers will still get reps, but it appears Reese is in a good position to back up Simon.
Will linebacker
Starter: Sonny Styles
Backup: C.J. Hicks
Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles made sure to specify that he considers both Styles and Hicks as starters. But the most interesting thing Knowles said is that there may be times Styles moves to mike and Hicks plays will, to give Simon a rest. Ohio State has that much faith in Styles.
Cornerbacks
Starter: Denzel Burke, Jordan Hancock and Davison Igbinosun
Backup: Jermaine Mathews Jr., Aaron Scott Jr. and Calvin Simpson-Hunt
I expect Lorenzo Styles Jr. to get playing time with the second team in some capacity, but he was hurt during the camp portions the media got to see.
Safety
Starter: Lathan Ransom and Caleb Downs
Backup: Malik Hartford and Jaylen McClain
This could be the best safety duo in the country — Ransom and Downs don’t leave the field as long as the starters are out there. Hartford and McClain, also with Jayden Bonsu, are the leaders for the second-team reps.
Special teams
Starters: punter Nick McLarty and kicker Jayden Fielding
Last week, Day announced that McLarty, the 6-foot-7 newcomer from Australia, will start at punter. Fielding should take kicks, again, after making 16 of 20 field goal attempts last season.
![go-deeper](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=128,height=128,fit=cover,format=auto/app/uploads/2024/08/23160714/GettyImages-1439262007-1024x683.jpg)
GO DEEPER
How I’m predicting Ohio State’s season: Will it end in a national championship?
(Photo of Jeremiah Smith: Adam Cairns / Columbus Dispatch / USA Today)
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