Florida Voter Rights Advocacy PDF

VRD conducted state level advocacy, but also overturned the lower court’s decision,175 resulting F LO RI DA engag...

VRD conducted state level advocacy, but also overturned the lower court’s decision,175 resulting F LO RI DA engaged in advocacy focused on specific counties in uncertainty for voters, including as many as in the Florida panhandle. We worked with 85,000 persons who had already registered to vote regional voting rights partners, local community pursuant to Amendment 4. LDF and our partner DEMOCRACY DEFENDED FLORIDA CITIZEN organizations, and volunteer poll monitors. The organizations engaged in extensive advocacy to FLORIDA VOTING AGE POPULATION map included below in this section illustrates ensure that as many of these 85,000 persons as Black/African American and Latinx alone where we focused most intensely geographically possible would be able to vote, as well as any in Florida in efforts to clear barriers to voting and others who had successfully paid off their fines 80% on-the-ground organizations to help returning Legal Fight for Restoration of 34% – 60% citizens determine their outstanding fines and fees Voting Rights of Returning Citizens and connect with organizations offering financial SOURCE: Citizen Voting Age Population by Race and Ethnicity (CVAP), U.S. Census Bureau In the 2018 election, a supermajority of Florida support to enable them ultimately to cast ballots.176 voters approved Amendment 4 to the Florida Pre-Election Engagement Constitution (“Amendment 4”), which restored voting rights for people with felony convictions Tallahassee ž Through our partnership with More Jacksonville who had completed any term of incarceration, probation, and parole.172 Shortly thereafter, the Than A Vote, recruited poll workers and Florida Legislature enacted a law that requires all approximately 900 Florida residents applied Gainesville legal financial obligations (fines, fees, court costs, to become poll workers for the general PRE-ELECTION – and restitution) to be paid before a person with election. MAJOR BARRIERS TO VOTING a felony conviction can vote.173 LDF, the ACLU, the ACLU of Florida, and the Brennan Center ž Through our partnership with Common Cause, VRD/PTV worked with 63 volunteers for Justice filed a lawsuit on behalf of returning Orlando trained to conduct local poll monitoring and citizens challenging these provisions. Following ž Resistance to the full instatement of an eight-day trial, the court struck portions of the voter education. Amendment 4/Restoration of Rights law, holding that it violated the U.S. Constitution. St. Petersburg ž Voter education and information sent via text ž Misinformation/Disinformation Specifically, it violated the 24th Amendment’s to 50,000 voters. prohibition on poll taxes and other taxes linked ž Challenges to voter’s eligibility to cast ballots to voting and violated the 14th Amendment as a ž Voter education materials and PPE mailed to form of wealth-based discrimination when applied 9,200 voters. ž Shortage of poll workers because of COVID-19 to voters who were unable to pay. The court also held that the voter registration form violated the ž Voter education materials mailed to ž Precinct closures/consolidation/location issues National Voter Registration Act.174 109,136 voters. ž Heightened risk of voter intimidation Miami Unfortunately, on September 11, 2020, the ž Over 6,000 sets of PPE and voter U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit education materials provided to local ž Risk of discriminatory voter purges partners for distribution to voters. ž Erroneous refusals to give provisional ballots 172 Jones v. DeSantis, 462 F. Supp. 3d 1196, 1205 (N.D. Fla.), rev’d and vacated sub nom. Jones v. Governor of Fla., 975 F.3d 1016 (11th 175 Jones v. Governor of Florida, 975 F.3d 1016 (11th Cir. 2020). Cir. 2020). 176 Lawrence Mower and Langston Taylor, Celebrities Spent Millions 173 Id. at 1206. So Florida Felons Could Vote.Will It Make a Difference?, ProPublica: Electionland (Dec. 4, 2020, 5:00 AM), https://www.propublica.org/ 174 Id. at 1250. article/bloomberg-lebron-james-fines-fees-florida-felons. 70 | DEMOCRACY DEFENDED THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE | tminstituteldf.org | 71  F LO RI DA Ballot drop-boxes and polling location The coronavirus was dangerous for all voters and Tallahassee Jacksonville advocacy: Our VRD team and our local partners especially so for Black and Latinx persons, who observed that many Florida counties failed to died from the virus at the highest rates.177 Drop provide enough early voting locations and drop- boxes specifically provide a safer voting option, Gainesville boxes, and many Black communities and other making the decision to limit the availability of drop FLORIDA CITIZEN communities of color lacked access to these boxes extremely dangerous in Black and Latinx VOTING AGE POPULATION important options. We also observed that many communities. We sent a letter to elections officials Black/African American and Latinx alone counties also lacked adequate public information in all 67 Florida counties urging them to place < 15% on the location of polling places, early voting sites, drop boxes outside wherever possible, in accessible Orlando and drop-boxes. VRD/PTV did intensive advocacy and convenient locations for communities of color, 15% – 34% work to address the shortages in the polling places, with at least one drop box per 15,000 to 20,000 early voting sites, and drop box locations in Black 34% – 60% voters. We also pushed counties to adopt 24-hour communities across the Panhandle region. St. Petersburg drop boxes available on weekends and evenings. 60% – 80% This advocacy was especially important because Escambia County Advocacy: > 80% drop boxes were the best and safest option for Escambia County initially designated only many voters. Numerous counties across the state Poll monitor visit nine early voting locations and drop boxes, installed 24-hour drop boxes and took substantial leaving several of Escambia’s significant Black steps to ensure wide availability of drop boxes for SOURCE: Citizen Voting Age Population by Race and Ethnicity (CVAP), U.S. Census Bureau communities without easy access to an early voting voters. site or a drop box. In October 2020, the Secretary of State (SOS) to do so notwithstanding the incorrect guidance Miami After weeks of unsuccessful advocacy, VRD, along issued incorrect guidance to the Supervisors of offered by the SOS.179 In 2021, the Florida with partner organizations, sent a letter to the Elections (SOEs) stating that drop boxes must legislature adopted legislation that requires 24 Escambia County Supervisor of Elections detailing be staffed full time.178 This was not a requirement hour monitoring of drop boxes. LDF filed a the racial disparities in the placement of early voting under state law at the time and would have lawsuit to challenge this and other restrictive locations and drop boxes. In response, Escambia effectively required counties to close their 24- measures passed in by the Florida legislature.180 County agreed to add a new early voting and drop hour drop-boxes. Following advocacy from VRD their vote-by-mail ballot in drop boxes across the Drop-box lines. Florida state law does not box location in Century, a predominantly Black and other voting rights organizations, as well as state — often the “lines” were of voters waiting specify whether a vote-by-mail ballot is timely if town located in the northern portion of Escambia statements from the Florida State Association in cars to drive up to drive-through drop box a voter is in line at 7 p.m. but has not placed it in County. Prior to this agreement, voters in Century of Supervisors of Elections criticizing the SOS’s lanes. Following VRD advocacy, the SOS issued the drop box.181 This was an especially concerning would have had to drive over 20 miles to reach the incorrect guidance, most counties that were guidance that anyone in line to cast a ballot at a issue. We saw lines of voters waiting to deposit closest early voting location or drop box. Ultimately, planning to offer 24-hour drop boxes continued drop box at 7 p.m. would be able to do so.182 over a thousand Escambia County voters were able to cast their ballot using these new convenient Mail ballot assistance. County election officials 179 Allison Ross, Late guidance from Florida’s elections chief could options – the new drop box and polling site. affect counties’ plans for mail ballot drop boxes, Tampa Bay Times (Oct. also issued incorrect and harmful guidance on 177 The COVID Racial Data Tracker, https://covidtracking.com/ 16, 2020), https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/elec- vote-by-mail ballots. In Bay County, the SOE race (last visited Aug. 12, 2021); Algernon Austin, Florida COVID-19 tions/2020/10/16/late-guidance-from-floridas-elections-chief-could- Update for African Americans: November 9, 2020, LDF| T. Marshall limit-use-of-mail-ballot-drop-boxes/. was incorrectly instructing organizations that Inst.: Medium (Nov. 12, 2020), https://tminstitute.medium.com/ florida-covid-19-update-for-african-americans-november-9-2020- 180 Press Release, NAACP Legal Def. and Educ. Fund, Inc., LDF volunteers were only permitted to pick up and 31cd6ee6565d. Files Lawsuit Against the State of Florida Over Suppressive Voting Law (May 6, 2021), https://www.naacpldf.org/press-release/ldf-files- 178 Dara Kam, Guard ballot drop boxes, DeSantis tells Florida elections lawsuit-against-the-state-of-florida-over-suppressive-voting-law/. officials in last-minute memo before early voting starts, South Florida Sun Sentinel (Oct. 17, 2020, 12:55 PM), https://www.sun-sentinel. 181 Fla. Stat. § 101.69 (2020). http://www.leg.state.fl.us/ 182 Letter from Brad McVay, General Counsel to Governor of Florida, com/news/politics/elections/fl-ne-early-voting-drop-box-guards- statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_ to Florida State Supervisors of Elections, (Oct. 24, 2020) (on file with 20201017-mrd4zdpqunh2ve2jpxpc4v73ku-story.html. String=&URL=0100-0199/0101/Sections/0101.69.html. NAACP Legal Def. and Educ. Fund, Inc. Thurgood Marshall Inst.). 72 | DEMOCRACY DEFENDED THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE | tminstituteldf.org | 73  with our local partners to ensure emergency ballot F LO RI DA protocol was followed in case of another outage. COVID-19 Closure. During early voting, the deliver two completed vote-by-mail ballots Remote Monitoring: Our remote monitors SOE Office in Okaloosa County was closed on behalf of other voters. Florida law allows were able to track and notify our advocacy team due to a COVID-19 outbreak. We maintained volunteers to pick up any number of ballots and and partners about reports of voter intimidation, phone contact with the Okaloosa SOE’s external deliver them on behalf of voters. VRD provided insufficient signage, voting machine issues, and counsel on an almost daily basis following the support to our local partners that enabled them other problems that came up during the election closure. Although the elections office refused to to convince the Bay County SOE to reverse season. Working with the SOE offices, VRD was reopen, they did commit to take several steps to and provide correct guidance to organizations able to address misinformation on county websites mitigate the harm, including agreeing to station an in Bay County. Similarly, Bay County’s election identified by our remote monitors and inform the employee at the closed office to redirect voters to officials were also incorrectly treating voters who public about the changes. open offices, accepting vote-by-mail ballots at the inadvertently sent in vote-by-mail envelopes that Just days before the general election, the critical closed office in a drop box, and sending additional were missing the ballots as voters who had cast ability of voters to determine their polling place employees to the open offices to handle any their ballot. With VRD’s support, our partners locations and check the status of their ballots was increase in traffic. convinced election officials to change this hampered when the SOS shut down the voter procedure, so voters who inadvertently mailed in Voter Intimidation. Several reports were made information lookup tool on their website. The SOS their vote-by-mail envelope without including the of a disturbing presence of trucks, tents, and made this change without providing notice to the ballot would still have an opportunity to vote. loud music promoting candidates. Some of these public or providing an effective alternative. VRD incidents could not be addressed because they Many voters across the panhandle region received led the advocacy to push the SOS to restore the occurred on private property next to a polling absentee ballots with return envelopes that were lookup tool, which they asserted they had taken site. There were multiple instances of vehicles pre-sealed due to weather or condensation in the down due to security concerns. Although the SOS blocking polling site entrances on Election Day. region. VRD worked with SOEs in eight counties did not restore the tool, we were able to persuade In Pinellas County, two armed persons stationed and secured commitments that voters would be them to quickly make major modifications to their themselves at a polling site during early voting permitted to cut open the pre-sealed envelope website to make it easier for voters to find their claiming they worked for the Trump campaign.184 and tape it closed, and those votes would not be polling place locations. VRD and our partners sent a letter to the county’s thrown out. VRD also persuaded those SOEs Early Voting & Election Day Sheriff and Florida State Attorney bringing to post guidance on their website for voters who their attention to the situation and urging an received pre-sealed return envelopes. Weather related emergencies. On October investigation into the incident of voter intimidation. 28, Hurricane Zeta struck the Florida coast. As a The letter also requested a public announcement Voter intimidation and police presence were result, three counties—Escambia, Santa Rosa, and of an investigation to discourage other acts of another theme of the Florida 2020 election. Okaloosa—shortened their early voting hours. VRD intimidation, especially on Election Day. Emails and text messages threatening voters who advocated for an extension of hours to make up for supported certain parties made national news.183 the lost time and sent text messages to over 50,000 Volunteers remotely monitoring social media VRD proactively sent letters to the Florida voters in those counties informing them of the uploaded a post reporting a man with a gun at a Department of State requesting that protocols for change in hours and providing them with resources Coral Gables poll site. Authorities were notified. addressing voter intimidation activity be sent to the on how and when to vote. On Election Day, there elections offices in advance of the election. Our in-person and remote volunteers reported a was a 30-minute power outage likely related to concerning police presence at numerous polling Hurricane Zeta at the Damascus Road Missionary Baptist Church in Escambia County. Voters were incorrectly told to wait, rather than being provided with emergency ballots. We sent a volunteer to 184 Trump spokesperson says armed guards outside St. Pete polling place 183 Melissa Quinn, Stefan Becket & Graham Kates, Emails threatening were not hired by campaign,WFLA News Channel 8 (Oct. 21, 2020, Florida voters to “vote for Trump or else!” linked to overseas servers, CBS ensure that the voters who were present during 9:02 PM), https://www.wfla.com/news/pinellas-county/armed-guards- NEWS (Oct. 21, 2020, 5:39 PM), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ at-st-pete-early-voting-site-told-deputies-they-were-hired-by-trump- florida-emails-proud-boys-vote-trump-linked-overseas-servers/. the outage were able to cast ballots and worked campaign-election-officials-say/. 74 | DEMOCRACY DEFENDED THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE | tminstituteldf.org | 75  F LO RI DA Voter and Volunteer Stories “Early rising on Election Day allowed me and my riding partner to witness the power of the Our in-person volunteers were trained by democratic process in action. All day to dawn, the Common Cause and LDF. We collaborated with sites in Florida. These included an armed officer excitement in the spirit of the people we observed many organizations in the Panhandle region, and with partisan apparel inside a polling location VOTER INTIMIDATION all issues identified by any organization or through as we moved from site to site stirred new hope for a renewed society and a dream for a new day a in Miami and an officer in Washington County the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline were escalated openly brandishing a weapon and police apparel coming. The experience was joyful; a reminder of through the LDF-run command center. We Voters received that visibly made voters uncomfortable.185 The days passed when people power was recognized as worked with approximately 63 volunteers in some police presence in a Black community in Leon a tool for true organizing. I was pleased to be part capacity during this election cycle. They were all County is detailed further below. Advocates of the great work you and your counterparts did. text messages incredibly flexible and dedicated to the work – one balanced the arduous tasks of not amplifying the Thanks for the opportunity.” — Miaisha 76-year-old man covered five counties between fear the intimidators sought to produce while indicating a vote for early voting and Election Day. In Florida, we used simultaneously collaborating with state officials technology provided by Common Cause and do Next Steps and Future Advocacy: and elections offices to evaluate and remove not have data to present the most frequent types a particular party threatening presences at voting locations. There are numerous issues for future of complaints as provided for other states. We advocacy including: At George Mullen Activity Center (Manatee received 224 Volunteer Poll Visit Reports. County), a truck was slowly driving around inside the 150 feet boundary. The passengers were and then were told “I was at the polling place in Clearview, FL. An older man appeared at the polling place. He had ž Removing the requirement that returning they were “being aggressively yelling at voters. citizens pay fines and fees in order to vote. not been able to vote before because of a felony Voters received text messages indicating a vote for conviction. Even under the new law he did not » Addressing the absence of accessible a particular party and then were told they were “being watched.” watched.” think he would be able to vote. Just a day or two before the election a policy clarification was issued information on outstanding fines and fees. that would allow him to vote. He learned about it Poll monitor intimidation. A polling place ž Improving regulations for operating election in the newspaper and came to the polling place in employee told an Election Protection volunteer sites, drop boxes, and curing ballots. the SOE who was unaware of the police presence Clearview. This was not the place he usually votes at Brownsville Community Center in Escambia and after investigation notified us that an officer but, without transportation, he had been unable County to leave. There was no legal basis for this ž Addressing voter intimidation. must be stationed as part of an agreement with to get to his regular polling place in the time since direction. We contacted the county attorney’s the owner of the community center in exchange the policy clarification. I worked with him and office who responded with a written commitment explaining that volunteers can continue to serve. for using the facility as a polling site. Other polling confirmed that he was in fact allowed to vote. We ž Removing unnecessary police presence sites did not have this condition, yet the location then found out his correct polling place and a at polling sites. Leon County: in a Black community did. Given the history member of the local NAACP picked him up and of discriminatory policing and the discomfort drove him there.” — M.A. At Aquilina Howell Community Center, an officer ž Providing adequate training of poll workers expressed by a Black student who notified us of about the difference between poll watchers was stationed outside a polling place near a large “An in-person volunteer reached out to me the police presence, this was a cause for concern. and poll monitors and about the importance of Black community the entire day. Two other officers about an elderly Black woman she knows who is Along with our partners, we reached out to media allowing nonpartisan poll monitors to conduct also came and went in their marked vehicles. Our bed-ridden and never received her vote-by mail and a Tallahassee city council member to urge their volunteer work. partner at All Voting Is Local Florida contacted ballot. The Florida team sent her a proxy-ballot local law enforcement to remove the officer or form, and I called her back and explained how take steps to ensure their presence was less visible to complete the form. The woman’s daughter and intrusive. However, the officer remained the was able to go to the Leon County Supervisor 185 Joel Shannon, Called out for ‘voter intimidation,’ Florida officer faces entire day. LDF and our partners in Florida are discipline for wearing ‘Trump 2020’ mask at polling place, USA TODAY of Elections Office with the proxy form and pick (Oct. 20, 2020, 10:48 PM), https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/ continuing to pursue the issue of police presence up a ballot for her mother. The woman called me politics/elections/2020/10/20/miami-police-officer-trump-2020-mask- at polling sites in Black communities. poll-discipline/6001128002/; Letter from Prepared to Vote/Voting back happy to say her daughter dropped off the Rights Defender (PTV/VRD) Florida Team (Nov. 3, 2020) (on file with author). completed ballot in time for it to be counted.” — Brielle 76 | DEMOCRACY DEFENDED THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE | tminstituteldf.org | 77  A tour bus, sponsored by the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, pulls up to a Miami- Dade County courthouse ahead of a special court hearing aimed at restoring the right to vote under Florida’s Amendment 4 in a Miami-Dade County courtroom on Nov. 8, 2019, in Miami, Florida. - Eighteen former felons saw their right to vote restored, allowing them to cast their ballot in the 2020 election. Photo by Zak BENNETT / AFP 78 | DEMOCRACY DEFENDED THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE | tminstituteldf.org | 79  Georgia has long suffered from the plague of and this limited the number of open polling G EO RG IA voter suppression that disproportionately harms sites.187 Problems and issues were evident at Black voters and other communities of color, and the start of the day. In the four most populated is a state formerly covered in full by the Voting counties serving a high percentage of Black voters DEMOCRACY DEFENDED Rights Act preclearance requirements before there were long lines and hours-long waits. These GEORGIA the Shelby County decision.186 As with many issues were caused in part by the miscalculation PRE-ELECTION – states, the Georgia elections were significantly by state and local elections officials of the support MAJOR BARRIERS TO VOTING impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The needed for the rollout of new voting machines, Georgia Presidential Preference Primary, originally even after they had three additional months to scheduled for March, was rescheduled for June prepare. The issues included inadequate training ž Stringent voter ID laws 9th, and combined with the Statewide Primary. for poll workers, equipment shortages, machine In addition to Election Day, November 3, 2020, malfunctions, and limited IT support, which left GEORGIA CITIZEN VOTING ž Poor election administration Georgia held run-off elections on January 5, 2021, thousands of voters waiting extremely long hours for two U.S. Senate seats and a Public Service in line, with reports of waits of up to five hours. AGE POPULATION » Inadequate poll worker training Commission (PSC) (regulator of rates for public In some cases, voters were unable to stay long Black or African American alone » Machine malfunctions utilities) seat. We briefly address here Georgia’s enough to cast a ballot.188 Thousands of voters did adoption of a new law post the January 5th election not receive their absentee ballot in the mail, which ž Discriminatory voter purges that is designed to suppress the votes of persons of resulted in voters having to vote in person. color, youth, and persons with disabilities. ž Polling site closures and consolidations/ Absentee Voting accessibility issues LDF conducted statewide advocacy, but In response to the pandemic, the Secretary of also engaged in advocacy focused on specific State (SOS) sent every active voter an absentee ž High risk of voter intimidation activity counties in southwest Georgia. We worked with ballot request form at their residential address. regional voting rights partners, local community Approximately 323,000 absentee ballot request organizations, and volunteer poll monitors. The forms were re-sent to voters who may not have map included below in this section illustrates received them because their residential address Atlanta < 14.7 polling site locations where our nonpartisan poll differed from their mailing address. About 60,000 14.7% – 40% monitor volunteers conducted site visits and voters received absentee ballot request forms with Augusta- assisted voters during the general election. At the wrong pre-printed return mailing or email 40% – 60% Richmond the invitation of Georgia voting rights partner addresses.189 Counties were inundated by the County 60% – 80% organizations, we engaged in targeted local and dramatic increase in absentee ballot requests and statewide advocacy during the runoff election did not have the capacity to process them. > 80% Primary Election SOURCE: Citizen Voting Age Population by Race and Ethnicity (CVAP), U.S. Columbus Census Bureau Just as states grappled with pandemic driven changes, our VRD/PTV team also had to adjust its plans. For the June 2020 Georgia primary, we had 187 Mark Niesse, Election depends on hiring many new poll workers across Georgia, Atlanta J.-Const. (Aug. 26, 2020), https://www.ajc.com/ to move from our in-person election protection news/state--regional-govt--politics/polls-open-and-voters-line-for- georgia-primary/RDkUA0eKfnge6xuWT3YwiJ/. operation to a wholly remote election monitoring program. 188 Mark Niesse et al., Metro Atlanta polling places now closed, Atlanta J.-Const. (June 9, 2020), https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional- govt--politics/polls-open-and-voters-line-for-georgia-primary/RD- As with many states, a large number of Georgia’s kUA0eKfnge6xuWT3YwiJ/?p. poll workers were not available due to COVID-19 189 Mark Niesse, Some Georgia absentee ballot request forms list wrong return address, Atlanta J.-Const. (Apr. 9, 2020), https://www.ajc. com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/some-georgia-absentee-bal- lot-request-forms-list-wrong-return-address/YH11y0tXOVsbPEW- 186 See Section 5 Jurisdictions, Supra note 165 ZhLZ0XI/. 80 | DEMOCRACY DEFENDED THURGOOD MARSHALL INSTITUTE | tminstituteldf.org | 81