Polling place shakeup hits 70K Cleveland voters
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Over 70,000 Cleveland voters have been assigned new polling locations for 2025.
Why it matters: Cleveland is already a-low turnout city — especially in off-year elections — and local leaders are concerned the changes will cause confusion and further depress turnout.
Stunning stat: Just 29% of registered voters cast ballots in the 2023 general election.
The latest: The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections formalized the new Cleveland ward maps last month and published detailed interactive precinct maps on its website.
Friction point: Cleveland City Council sent out a press release last week calling on the BOE to explain the changes and implement "clearer communication strategies" to notify voters.
What they're saying: "The sudden and widespread change in polling locations is alarming, especially when the rationale behind many of these changes has not been made clear to the public," said Councilman Charles Slife.
- "Cleveland voters should not have to jump through hoops to participate in elections."
Zoom in: Though the configuration of the new west-side Ward 15 closely resembles Slife's existing Ward 17, more than 42% of voters there will have new polling locations.
The other side: The BOE shared with Axios an extensive list of reasons for individual location changes, including building closures, construction work, parking concerns and requests from council members.
- The BOE said in a release Monday that all registered voters in Cleveland are being mailed an informational guide for the May 6 primaries that includes their new ward, precinct, voting location and election information.
On the ballot: A few suburban school levies, including an emergency levy in Parma.
- Most Cleveland voters will only vote on statewide Issue 2, a constitutional amendment allowing the state to issue bonds to local governments for public infrastructure projects.