Ron DeSantis Hit By Major Lawsuit To Kill Voter Suppression Bill

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) signed Senate Bill SB90 with a flourish in the carnival-like atmosphere he set up to celebrate his action. He invited Fox News only as he turned a simple signing into a house of mirrors.

A third lawsuit had already been filed against Florida’s omnibus voter suppression bill SB 90, according to a new civil rights group, Democracy Docket:

‘The law bans anyone except poll workers from distributing food and water to voters waiting in line, cuts the period over which absentee ballot requests will be honored, and shortens the time in which ballot drop boxes may be used.’

Democracy Docket’s website pointed out that the plaintiffs in the last lawsuit included Florida Rising Together, Faith in Florida, Unidosus, Equal Ground Education Fund, Hispanic Federation, and Poder Latinx. Their attorneys argue that the provisions in this law limiting voter access violates Florida’s  First, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, plus Section 2 of the Voting Rights Amendment (VRA).

On the very day that DeSantis signed the bill, the League of Women Voters of Florida, Black Voters Matter Fund, and the Florida Alliance for Retired Americans also entered their lawsuit regarding SB90.

Then, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund filed the next lawsuit. The civil rights organization filed on behalf of the Florida NAACP, Disability Rights Florida, and Common Cause. It also questions the bill’s provisions under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The complaint argued against the restrictive bill, according to Democracy Docket:

‘Lawsuit brought by Florida Rising Together, Faith in Florida, Unidosus, Equal Ground Education Fund, Hispanic Federation and Poder Latinx against Florida challenging the voter suppression law, SB 90.

‘The case claims that SB 90’s drop-box restrictions, vote by mail repeat request requirement, line warming restriction and voter registration disclaimer violate the Section 2 of the VRA and the First, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments.’

The new civil rights group tweeted twice about the latest lawsuit:

‘ALERT: A THIRD lawsuit has been filed in Florida over #SB90 by@FLRising, @FaithFlorida, @WeAreUnidosUS, Equal Ground Education Fund, @HispanicFed, & @PoderLatinx. The groups claim that the bill violates the VRA and the 1st, 14th, & 15th Amendments.’

Screen-Shot-2021-05-18-at-10.16.45-AM Ron DeSantis Hit By Major Lawsuit To Kill Voter Suppression Bill Activism Corruption Crime Politics Top Stories @FLRising, @FaithFlorida, @WeAreUnidosUS, Equal Ground Education Fund, @HispanicFed, & @PoderLatinx SUE Florida over voter suppression bill #SB90, claiming that the law violates the VRA and the 1st, 14th, & 15th Amendments. Read the complaint here (below)’

Screen-Shot-2021-05-18-at-10.19.58-AM Ron DeSantis Hit By Major Lawsuit To Kill Voter Suppression Bill Activism Corruption Crime Politics Top Stories

Democratic Party’s lawyer Marc Elias, the League of Women Voters of Florida, Black Voters Matter Fund, Florida Alliance for Retired Americans brought one lawsuit.

Their lawsuit argued that SB90 does the following, according to The Law & Crime: 

‘Ratchets up voter ID requirements, prohibits mass mailing and collection of ballots, and decreases drop box availability.’

The complaint’s objection was “well-founded:”

‘SB 90 is a bill that purports to solve problems that do not exist, caters to a dangerous lie about the 2020 election that threatens our most basic democratic values, and, in the end, makes it harder to vote without adequate justification for doing so.’

‘[T]he law “does not impede all of Florida’s voters equally. [It was] crafted to and will operate to make it more difficult for certain types of voters to participate in the state’s elections, including those voters who generally wish to vote with a vote-by-mail ballot and voters who have historically had to overcome substantial hurdles to reach the ballot box, such as Florida’s senior voters, youngest voters, and minority voters.’

SB90 also banned third parties from assisting voters with their mail-in ballots:

‘The political right labels the practice as ballot harvesting; its supporters describe it as ballot collection.’

‘SB 90 also requires voters to more routinely “re-request” ballots, blocks anyone other than election workers from providing food or water to voters waiting in line, and requires voter registration organizations “to recite a misleading, government-mandated ‘warning’ that has the intent to and will have the effect of discouraging Floridians from registering to vote with such organizations.”‘

Giving people in voting lines food and/or drink was called “line warming.”

Twitter world was grateful when they saw this tweet from Democracy Docket. Take a look at some of our favorites below:

Screen-Shot-2021-05-18-at-10.18.56-AM Ron DeSantis Hit By Major Lawsuit To Kill Voter Suppression Bill Activism Corruption Crime Politics Top Stories Screen-Shot-2021-05-18-at-10.20.14-AM Ron DeSantis Hit By Major Lawsuit To Kill Voter Suppression Bill Activism Corruption Crime Politics Top Stories Three White Lions podcast, Gloria Christie reads her week’s most important news/ commentary stories in the liberal online newspaper The Bipartisan Report. Gloria Christie Report her newsletter for people on the go. Written in her own unique style with a twist of humor in a briefer version of Bipartisan Report. Christie’s Mueller Report Adventures In Bite-Sizes a real-life compelling spy mystery. Find her here on Facebook.