msnbc has been closely following the case of two fired elections officials in Ohio. The two Democrats who were removed from their positions by the Republican Secretary of State after they tried to preserve early voting in their district on the final three days before Election Day.
On Thursday, a district judge denied their request for a preliminary injunction against their termination, ruling that they “failed to identify any fundamental right or liberty interest that was violated by their removal.” Despite today’s decision, a previous ruling has allowed for full early voting and weekend voting in the battleground state.
The two officials, Dennis Lieberman and Thomas Ritchie, appeared on Thursday’s PoliticsNation with the Rev. Al Sharpton to declare they have no regrets.
“We would not have changed a thing,” Lieberman said. He also joked that after the election is over, he “might nominate [Secretary of State Jon Husted] for Democrat of the year, because he has done more by firing Tom and I to get people excited in Ohio to come out and vote, and to bring national attention to the whole arena of early voting.”
In 2008, the total number of early votes cast in Ohio was 28,000. So far in 2012, more than that have already been cast: 28,023, with 12 more days left until Election Day. Early voting took center stage on Thursday, with President Obama’s trip to Illinois marking the first time a sitting president has ever voted early.
Versha Sharma Recommended
