COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Votes cast in Ohio for Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein will not be counted despite her name appearing on the state’s ballot in Tuesday’s election after a panel of the appeals court had rejected her request to force the election director to count them.
The three-judge panel of the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday against her request for an injunction against Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose in a dispute over the person listed as her running mate on the ballot.
Stein filed to be an independent presidential candidate in Ohio because the Green Party lost state recognition several years ago. She named Anita Rios — the party’s 2014 nominee for governor — as her running mate until Butch Ware was nominated at the national convention on Aug. 17.
Ware’s appointment came after an Aug. 12 administrative deadline for replacing an independent vice presidential candidate, election officials said.
Rose’s office granted a request to remove Rios’ name but said Ware could not be added. It then informed the Stein campaign later that month that her votes would not count, despite her still being on the ballot.
Stein’s lawsuit alleged that the letter requesting Rios’ withdrawal was written and delivered by a local party official without Rios’ knowledge or consent. It asked the court to issue a preliminary injunction and restraining order to ensure any votes cast for Stein would be counted.
LaRose has ordered Ohio’s 88 county boards of elections to inform the electorate that votes for Stein “will be null and void and will not be counted,” according to court documents.
As a Green Party candidate in 2016, Stein received 46,271 votes in Ohio, or 0.84% of the statewide vote.
