Urban legend

We've had enough real voting problems in Ohio without making new ones up.

Several Enquirer reporters have received dozens of emails inquiring about this one, that has been repeated as fact all over the Internet:
"ACTION ALERT: Blackwell purged Ohio Voter Rolls Oct 1st.- Vote Early"
by KStreetProjector, posted on Daily Kos on Oct. 18 at http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/10/18/85915/109

First of all, Ohio's 88 county Boards of Elections are the government entities that purge rolls of inactive voters -- people who have died, moved or not voted during two federal election cycles (at least four years) -- not the Ohio Secretary of State.

Second, notices to inactive registered voters are mailed by county boards -- not the state -- and are typically sent out in odd election years.

"If you look at the blog, it's discussing something someone overheard at a lunch at a restaurant in Washington, D.C.," said James Lee, spokesman for Secretary of State Ken Blackwell. "It's just ridiculous."

That being said, if anyone thinks their voter registration was wrongly purged, please let us know.