President Joe Biden currently holds 3,057 pledged delegates, meaning that he is all but assured of receiving the Democratic Party's nomination.

Yet despite this, a legal controversy is brewing in Ohio that could see Biden rejected from the state's ballot. 

Democratic convention is scheduled for after certification deadline

According to The Epoch Times, that warning was issued earlier this month by Paul Disantis, who serves as legal counsel to Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose.

He explained in a letter sent to Ohio Democratic Party Chair Liz Walters on April 5 that its presidential nominee must be certified to the secretary of state's office by August 7.

That requirement is set to create a conflict between the party and state law, as the Democratic National Convention will not begin until August 19.

"I am left to conclude that the Democratic National Committee must either move up its nominating convention or the Ohio General Assembly must act by May 9, 2024 (90 days prior to a new law’s effective date) to create an exception to this statutory requirement," Disantis wrote.

Party lawyer says Biden can be "provisionally" certified

The Times noted that Democratic attorney Donald McTigue responded to Disantis with a letter of his own four days later.

In his correspondence, McTigue put forward the suggestion that Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris could be "provisionally" certified by August 7, with official confirmation coming on August 25.

"Doing so here would allow the millions of Ohioans who support President Biden and Vice President Harris to exercise their fundamental constitutional right to meaningfully participate in the presidential election," McTigue wrote.

He stressed that Biden has already secured the required number of delegates, meaning there is "no ambiguity" regarding his status as the party's nominee.

McTigue went to insist that using the certification deadline to bar Biden from Ohio's ballot would be "plainly unconstitutional."

Officials reject McTigue's proposal

However, Disantis replied with a subsequent letter this past Monday in which he disputed McTigue's claim that a provisional certification could be accepted by the secretary of state's office.

He insisted that Ohio law does not "provide the Democratic Party with an alternative process" regarding certification, a position which was reiterated in another letter from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's office.