Press Release

As the court found today, for the past 20 years, ‘Florida has repeatedly sought to make voting tougher for Black voters’ as the Legislature worked to pick and choose the voters they want to participate in our government

Common Cause Florida and other voting rights groups today urged Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto Senate Bill 524, which would have widespread consequences on elections in the state.

Common Cause Florida, Fair Districts Now, and a diverse group of individual plaintiffs from across the state filed a federal lawsuit today in the Northern District of Florida arguing that the court must step in to ensure that voters, candidates, and elections officials have a fair and representative congressional map in ample time for the 2022 elections.

Our ‘government by the people’ is stronger and more representative when more people vote. SB 524 flies in the face of that ideal. The Appropriations Committee should stop this steamroller in its tracks and defeat this bill.  

The substitute dropped yesterday would make changes to what seems like every facet of election law, at the same time elections supervisors are trying to implement all the changes made last year. In addition, the supervisors need to prepare for tasks from redistricting and reprecincting.

Earlier today, a panel of national and Florida redistricting experts briefed the media on the history and state of play in the current redistricting cycle. The panel discussed past legislative action and litigation to end partisan and racial gerrymandering in the state. They also described how to implement an accountable and transparent process that results in fair district maps.