Bernie Sanders sued Ohio’s top elections official in federal court on Tuesday over a little-known rule change that bans 17-year-olds who will be 18 by the general election in November to vote in the state’s primary next week.
In December, Secretary of State Jon A. Husted, issued a directive without much fanfare explaining that although 17-year-old voters are allowed to nominate candidates for office — meaning they can vote in other primary races for the U.S. Senate race or Ohio legislative races — they are not allowed to directly elect an official. Hustead argued that because a primary elects delegates to a convention who then nominate a candidate, a presidential primary does not count as nominating contest, but rather an election, thereby barring participation by such 17-year-olds.
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