Dem
51
GOP
49
Joe Biden might not be allowed on the Ohio ballot because he will not be the official nominee of the Democratic Party until the roll call vote, probably on Aug. 22, 2024. Ohio law requires parties to submit the names of their candidates before Aug. 7. Ohio is not really a swing state, but not having Biden on the ballot could depress Democratic turnout, which might be fatal to Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH). Losing that seat would almost certainly mean Republican control of the Senate in Jan. 2025.
Next came Alabama. There the deadline for getting on the November ballot is Aug. 15. Alabama is not a swing state and there are no crucial Senate elections there, but missing the deadline is sloppy.
Now a third example has cropped up: Washington State. Here the deadline is Aug. 20. Washington is less likely to be a problem because the Democrats have the trifecta and can change the law if need be. Besides, the secretary of state, Steve Hobbs, is a Democrat.
Still, missing all these deadlines is inexcusable. When the DNC planned the convention years ago, they should have had a summer intern go look up the deadlines in all 50 states and D.C. and then picked a convention date that was prior to the earliest deadline. The first week of August would have been fine. The party that does not hold the White House holds the first convention, so next time a Republican is elected, the Ohio law could come back to bite the Republicans in the rump. However, the Republicans completely control the Ohio state government, so they will no doubt be willing to give the GOP a pass. Getting all the states to move their deadlines to, say, Aug. 25 would be even better, but don't count on that happening. (V)