A transgender woman was disqualified from an Ohio state House competition because she omitted her previous name, despite receiving ample names to appear on the ballot. This raises concern that other trans individuals across the country may encounter similar obstacles.
One of the four transgender candidates vying for state office in Ohio was Vanessa Joy, who did so largely in response to proposed limitations on LGBTQ+ people’s rights. She was opposing Republican member Matthew Kishman in House District 50, a heavily Democratic district in Stark County, Ohio. Joy claims she gave her birth certificate and name to the Stark County Board of Elections for the primary election on March 19, 2022, when she changed them legally.
However, Joy learned on Tuesday that a prospect must submit any name changes within the previous five years in order to be eligible for the vote, according to an obscure 1990s state law. Joy was unaware of the law because it is not already mentioned in the applicant requirement guidelines on the website for the Ohio Secretary of State.
Joy claimed that using her deadname—a name used by the transgender community to refer to the name given at birth rather than one they chose that is consistent with their gender identity—would be equivalent to giving her original name.
While Joy asserted that the law’s nature is to weed out bad actors, it also puts a barrier in the way of transgender people running for office who might not want to share their last name for significant reasons, such as fear for their safety.
Joy said, “I personally may have done so because being elected was important to me, if I had known that I needed to put my deadname on my requests.” However, it would be difficult for many people to enter because they would not like their names on the requests.
“It’s a risk, and that name is useless,” she continued.
Frank LaRose, the Ohio Secretary of State, and the Stark County Board of Elections did not immediately respond to emails on Thursday asking for opinion. Whether any current or former state legislators have been subject to this legislation is unclear.
Election specialist Rick Hasen, a professor at UCLA Law School, claimed that while requiring applicants to share any name changes in Ohio presented challenges, doing so usually serves the right purpose. Hasen wrote in an email, “Disclosing past names used by the candidate would make sense if a candidate has something to hide in their past, such as criminal activity.”
The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund’s Vice President of Political Programs, Sean Meloy, stated that he was unaware of any monitoring efforts to determine how many states require name changes on petition documents.
“The biggest problem is the careful enforcement of it,” Meloy stated in an interview on Thursday.
Some states have increased their restrictions on transgender people over the past few years, including preventing minors from receiving gender-affirming services like hormones and puberty blockers. That has led to restrictions on which school restrooms trans children and students can use and which sports teams they can join in some states.
A record number of transgender individuals were elected last year, according to Meloy, and he anticipates that trend will continue in 2024.
The Republican governor of Ohio overrode restrictions that Ohio lawmakers passed late last year, but several Republican state representatives claim they intend to do so as soon as next year.
Some liberals, according to Meloy, are attempting to muffle trans voices.
He made reference to Zooey Zephyr, a trans lawmaker who was barred from speaking on Montana’s House floor last year after refusing to offer an apology for telling colleagues who supported the ban on gender-affirming care that they would have blood on their hands.
“This seems like a carefully enforced action to try to stop other transgender people from doing that,” Meloy said, adding that anti-trans legislation is being moved after more.
On Thursday, Joy filed an appeal against her dismissal, and she is now looking for legal counsel. She intends to make an effort to alter Ohio’s laws.
