Florida Legislature passes elections bill that adds restrictions to voting
One signature now stands between Florida voters and a slew of new restrictions on casting ballots in the Sunshine State.
After days of contentious debate and last-minute amendments bouncing between chambers, the Republican-controlled state House and Senate came to an agreement and party-line votes approved Senate Bill 90 on the eve of Florida’s final day of the legislative session.
If signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, the bill would create restrictions such as adding new ID and signature requirements for voting by mail, limiting who can return a completed mail-in ballot, expanding partisan observation power during ballot tabulation and creating additional restrictions for drop box use.
Introduction
Provisional ballots are meant to be a failsafe for voters, who are required to cast them when their eligibility is in question. But such ballots require extra steps to ensure they’re counted, increasing the odds they ultimately won’t be.
In Ohio, provisional ballot use is among the highest in the nation, according to data tracked by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, and a new report finds trends there moving in the wrong direction.
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A slightly increased percentage of in-person voters in Ohio cast provisional ballots in 2020 compared to 2016, the report found. Counties with a higher percentage of Black and brown residents and young voters had elevated provisional ballot use, a finding in keeping with national trends, while it was lower in counties with higher median incomes.
The continued public fallout from the election overhaul bill signed into law in Georgia in March was frequently brought up by Democrats during debate, calling the Florida bill ârevival of Jim Crow in this state.â âThat bill that was passed in the state just north of us sent us a message, and the response to that bill should let us know we should not be doing this,â Democratic state Rep. Michael Greico said during House debate, pleading, âPlease do not Georgia my Florida.â Florida Republicans, who have repeatedly acknowledged that Florida ran a successful and secure 2020 election, said the bill would provide âguardrailsâ to prevent anyone from âgaming the systemâ in the future.
Florida passes sweeping election bill to restrict vote-by-mail, drop boxes
By (0) I Voted stickers hang on the side of a poll worker on election day for the 2020 Presidential Election at the Miami Fire Station 2 in Miami, Fla., on Nov. 3, 2020. File Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI | License Photo
April 30 (UPI) Florida s legislature has sent a controversial sweeping bill to restrict voting in the state to the desk of Gov. Ron DeSantis who is expected to sign it despite opponents accusing the legislation of being a form of voter suppression.
S.B. 90passed the state s House 77-40 and the Senate 23-17 on Thursday to impose restrictions on vote-by-mail, such as requiring voters to request such ballots each election cycle and requiring additional identifying information for vote-by-mail ballot requests.