Seven Republican officeholders and candidates packed Otie's Tavern & Grill in Hilliard on Aug. 29 to rally support for Issue 3. The proposed constitutional amendment would enshrine Ohio's existing photo voter ID requirement in the state constitution.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy headlined the event alongside U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, Ohio Auditor Keith Faber, U.S. Rep. Mike Carey, Ohio GOP Chairman Alex Triantafilou and former state Rep. Jay Edwards. Ramaswamy called the Hilliard stop a "kickoff event" for the Issue 3 campaign in a post on X on Aug. 29.

Issue 3, placed on the Nov. 3 ballot by the Republican-controlled Ohio legislature, would move the state's photo ID voting requirement from state law into the Ohio Constitution, according to the Ohio Capital Journal's voter guide. The amendment would make that rule harder to change or repeal.

Ramaswamy framed the measure as a state-level answer to the federal SAVE Act, which failed in Congress. "Washington D.C. couldn't pass the SAVE Act, but we can get it done here in Ohio," he wrote on X on Aug. 29.

LaRose, who is term-limited as secretary of state and is running for state auditor, has argued the requirement has not suppressed turnout. During a visit to the Columbiana County Board of Elections on Friday, Aug. 28, he said voter participation increased after Ohio began requiring photo IDs, according to the Morning Journal News.

The rally doubled as a showcase for the Republican statewide ticket. Columbus Dispatch photographs showed campaign signs for Ramaswamy, Husted and Shawn Kaeser alongside Issue 3 pamphlets. At least one attendee wore a shirt supporting Robert Sprague, the Republican candidate for secretary of state.

Carey and Triantafilou were photographed greeting and speaking with attendees. Husted is running for U.S. Senate against Democrat Sherrod Brown. Faber is seeking the attorney general's office, and Edwards is the Republican nominee for state treasurer.

Ohio's voter registration deadline is Oct. 5. Polls open Nov. 3 at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.