Ky. election reform bill gains bipartisan support

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 6:00 PM PT – Tuesday, March 9, 2021

A Kentucky election reform law received bipartisan support to enhance resident voter access and ballot security. According to Tuesday’s reports, House Bill 574 is now on the Senate floor after passing through the House in a 93-4 vote.

I shot this video too soon – just 24 hours after passing committee, this major election reform bill passed the House 93-4. No member spoke against it! With leadership, even highly polarized issues like election policy can be tackled and resolved to wide acclaim. https://t.co/9tM2eNNrbk

— KY SOS Michael Adams (@KYSecState) February 26, 2021

For the first time in state history, voters would be given three days of early access at voting centers and allow signatures to be fixed if mailed incorrectly. If passed, voters would also be able to request ballots online with an absentee portal instead of from local county clerks.

LOUISVILLE, KY – NOVEMBER 03: An election official sat between stacks of blank ballots in the polling area in the KFC YUM! Center on November 3, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Jon Cherry/Getty Images)

“The absentee portal itself is one of the largest steps of securing our elections that we’ve taken in over a generation,” Jared Dearing, executive director at the State Board of Elections said. “The idea that in a very real time we can track absentee ballots, and we’re no longer in a trust me election.”

The bill passed through committee unanimously and officials believe it will likely be passed by the Senate to become state law.

MORE NEWS: Md. Lifting Capacity Limits For Businesses On Friday