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Is your voting record public?

If you are registered to vote and what elections you voted in is public record, but how you voted is not.

TOLEDO, Ohio —

With election day being less than one week away, voters' mailboxes are being filled with campaign fliers for different candidates. Another type of flier has been making the rounds – a voting report card. 

The fliers show whether or not someone voted in previous elections. Some mailers show whether or not someone's neighbors are active voters too.

Different organizations, including the Center for Voter Informationthe Voter Participation Center and the Ohio Democratic Party are some of the organizations sending out fliers.

One report card says "we plan to update this voter report card after the upcoming election and will be interested to see whether or not you voted."

The fliers may be seen as invasive or like a threat. So are these types of cards allowed?

According to the Department of Justice, federal law prohibits intimidation, threats and coercion throughout the voting process. These fliers aren't telling people to vote or who to vote for and the information on them is public record, so the mailings are legal.

Why do these organizations send out these mailers?

President and CEO of the Center for Voter Information Tom Lopach provided the following statement: 

As a civic-engagement group, we use public records in Ohio and elsewhere to help voters understand their voting records. Those who can vote—and have previously participated—often are inspired to vote when shown their record as it compares to those in their community.  It’s a way to provide some meaningful benchmarks and encourage participation in our elections.

This is not the first election where these types of fliers have been mailed out.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose issued a warning about fliers from the Voter Participation Center and the Center for Voter Information in 2022. He said these letters are not affiliated with the Secretary of State's office.

LaRose said voters should know that voteohio.gov is the trusted source for all election information.

Whether or not you are registered to vote is public record. To see if you are registered, as well as where your polling location is, you can go to the voter lookup page on the Secretary of State's website.

On the website you put in your first and last name, along with what county you live in to find out.

On each county's website, voters can see what elections they previously voted in.

How someone has voted is not public record. No one can see how someone voted or who they voted for. The only way for someone to know how you voted, is if you tell them.

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