Last month, Governor Ron DeSantis called on schools to close during the August primary and November general elections to accommodate what could be a record voter turnout.
TALLAHASSEE – A super Democratic PAC and other left-wing groups have agreed to withdraw their demand to vote against Governor Ron DeSantis and the Republican Party on the eve of a federal trial that was scheduled to begin Monday.
The groups lobbied to change Florida’s voting laws because of the current coronavirus pandemic, but there were signs that the lawsuit was in trouble. Federal District Judge Robert Hinkle in late June refused to order changes immediately, including a request that taxpayers cover the cost of mailing ballots.
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The decision to end most or all of the legal battle is another victory for Republicans in a key battlefield state that could make or break President Donald Trump’s reelection effort.
The two parties to the lawsuit negotiated a settlement requiring Florida’s chief election official to educate local election supervisors about prepaid postage and encourage them to use mailboxes and make vote-by-mail request forms available in Spanish. She also calls for Secretary of State Laurel Lee to launch a public relations campaign to inform voters about different ways to vote. Lee also promises to run an outreach campaign for unregistered voters, which was something the state was already planning to do because it is joining a multi-state association to combat voter fraud.
This is a far cry from what Priorities USA and other groups were seeking in their lawsuit. Republicans reveled Sunday in their victory over the Democratic-aligned group and its allies.
“Today’s victory is a victory for Florida voters and a victory for electoral integrity,” said Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel in a statement. “The Democrats’ assault on our electoral process is not based on facts or reasons, so they are dismissing every claim in their radical lawsuit. The RNC will continue to intervene and fight against Democratic attempts to circumvent the existing law and weaken our electoral process. ”
It is not entirely clear whether the settlement will end all litigation. The notice filed in federal court on Sunday does not mention local election supervisors who were also listed as defendants. Most of Florida’s local electoral supervisors, both Republican and Democrat, were fighting the lawsuit, saying it could create problems in imposing change so close to the election. Florida Elementary is August 18, and ballots have already been mailed.
A spokesperson for Priorities USA said the group would have final updates and details on Monday.
Priorities USA, along with the Florida Alliance for Retired Americans, the Alliance for Progress, and several others, filed a lawsuit in May seeking to reject state ballot return deadlines and laws that limit who is allowed to collect vote-by-mail ballots and return them to local election offices. The lawsuit had been consolidated with a similar one filed in March by other groups, including Dream Defenders, a nonprofit organization established after the fatal shooting of teenager Trayvon Martin.
DeSantis, a Republican and Trump ally, had come under pressure this year from local election supervisors, who have expressed fear that the coronavirus pandemic may affect their ability to recruit election workers and manage voting during a presidential year. .
Last month, DeSantis asked schools to close during the August primary and November general elections to accommodate what could be a record voter turnout. It also issued an executive order that makes it easier for state employees to work at the polls on Election Day.
Democrats and some supervisors were disappointed by the governor’s decision, saying it didn’t go far enough. The association representing state election officials first asked DeSantis in early April to give them flexibility on early voting, polling places, and the time period for mailing ballots.
