Biden should be on the ballot. Alabama gets it — Why don't Ohio Republicans?

There's no doubt the Democratic Party blundered big time.

It should have managed its calendar to ensure the Democratic National Convention would be convened in time to ensure its presumptive candidate — President Joe Biden — was nominated in time to make the ballot in Ohio and all other states.

The timeline was clear.

Ohio law requires certification of the ballot 90 days before an election − Aug. 7 this year. Biden will not be officially nominated until the Democratic National Convention Aug. 19 in Chicago.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose's office raised the error in an April 5 letter to Ohio Democratic Party Chair Liz Walters, warning that Biden is at risk of not making the Nov. 5 ballot.

Ohio officials on April 16 soundly rejected a Democratic plan to provisionally certify Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris ahead of the Aug. 7 deadline.

"No alternative process is permitted," Julie M. Pfeiffer, a staff lawyer in Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's office, told LaRose's office, according to reporting by the USA TODAY Ohio Bureau which serves the Columbus Dispatch and other newspapers.

Asked about the issue earlier, Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima, made it clear that he didn't mind twisting the sword.

"I think it's a Democratic problem," he told reporters.

Why Matt Huffman is wrong

The Democrats screwed up, but this is not a Democratic problem. It is a democratic problem that should be fixed and has been fixed here in past elections.

A similar problem is happening in Alabama. Republicans there are working with Democrats to find a solution.

“I’d like to think if the shoe was on the other foot, this would be taken care of,” Alabama state Sen. Sam Givhan, a Republican, told that state's Al.com.

Debates should be a pickup game not a bloody fight. Censorship, not disagreement the problem

Ohio has temporarily changed the deadline in the past. It was done to accommodate both the 2020 Republican and Democratic conventions that saw the nominations of then-president Trump and Biden.

Before that, it was done for the 2012 conventions that saw the parties nominate Mitt Romney and then president-Barack Obama.

If democracy were a game, it would be perfectly fine for Ohio Republicans to take this as a crushing victory and leave Democrats on the field embarrassed and shaking.

If Biden's name does not appear on the November ballot, a price will be paid by the nearly 500,000 Ohioans who voted for the virtually unopposed Biden in the March primary and the millions who anticipate voting for him in November.

Those voters will not be the only losers.

As they've done with gerrymandering and last year's failed August special election for constitutional amendments changes, Ohio GOP leaders will show that they see fair elections as hindrances not goals.

Playing democracy like a game could come with consequences

Such dirty tactics are not only immorally wrong, they are unlikely necessary to secure Donald Trump's victory in Ohio.

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee won Ohio in 2016 and 2020 by more than 8%. There is a good change he will win big again this year.

Making the Democrats' gaffe a them problem instead of an us problem will not only be a major embarrassment to Ohio but it may backfire on Republicans.

Such cringy gamesmanship no doubt energized typically unmotivated Democrats to turnout for the special election last August.

Shift from Obama to Trump: What out-of-staters need to know about Buckeye State.

Not having Biden's name on the ballot may keep Republicans from showing up on Election Day believing Trump is running unopposed, which would help U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown and other down ticket candidates.

This issue is not unprecedented

In 2020, both the Republican and Democratic parties ran into candidate certification issues in Oklahoma, Illinois, Washington and Montana, according to reporting by the USA TODAY Ohio Bureau.

The same issue came up in Alabama and Washington this year but solutions to allow Biden on ballots are likely in those states.

Washington's secretary of state — a Democrat —is expected to accept a provisional certification, the Seattle Times reported.

On Wednesday, Alabama House and Senate committees approved bills to change the deadline to allow Biden on the November ballot, according to Al.com.

What if the shoe was not on the Democrats' foot?

The shoe could very well have been on the Republicans' foot this year, meaning Donald Trump's name was not on the ballot.

It would be wrong to disenfranchise Republican voters just as it is wrong to disenfranchise Democrats.

It would be a democratic problem as it is now. We'd expect the Democratic Party to work on a fix to get the Republican candidate on the ballot.

The reason is simple: this is not about the names on the ballot.

It is about voters.

This piece was written by Dispatch Opinion Editor Amelia Robinson on behalf of the editorial board of The Columbus Dispatch. Editorials are fact-based assessments of issues of importance to the communities we serve. These are not the opinions of our reporting staff members, who strive for neutrality in their reporting.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio must put Biden on the ballot for November election