"Ohio Trans Candidates Cleared for House Race Despite Deadname Threats"

Transgender candidate Arienne Childrey, cleared to run in a Republican-majority Ohio house race, faced disqualification for not disclosing her former name on petition paperwork as required by a little-used state elections law. The law, unfamiliar to many state elections officials, mandates candidates to disclose any name changes in the past five years. Three other trans candidates for the legislature have also encountered issues with this law. Republican governor Mike DeWine called for amending the law, while another candidate, Vanessa Joy, was disqualified for omitting her deadname from petition paperwork and is working to change the law with legal counsel and the Ohio Democratic party.