Home Rule: Tallahassee BOGO: Elections Bill Constricts Democracy and Home Rule

By Jennifer Webb

Last week Senator Baxley (R-Ocala) described his Elections Bill (SB90) by referencing press coverage of Florida’s 2020 election: “Much has been written about our election process.” He’s correct: Our election process from last cycle made national news. The coverage came in two stages.

The first wave of press was immediate: Florida was held up as a shining example of a well-run election. We had more people participate than ever before – more than 11 million according to Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee. An unprecedented 4.8 million Floridians voted by mail: 2.1 million Democrats, 1.5 million Republicans, and 1 million NPAs. Yet, our elections ran smoothly and securely.

During a recent meeting of the House Public Integrity and Ethics Committee, our own Supervisor of Elections, Julie Marcus, explained,

“Florida was a resounding undisputed success. Why? Because Florida did not overhaul the election code or make sweeping changes at the last minute.” She explained that voters had faith in the process, especially vote-by-mail, known to be reliable and secure.

The second wave of press came earlier this year, after an FBI investigation and arrest: Frank Artiles, former state legislator and Republican operative, was arrested after an FBI investigation uncovered election fraud. Artiles might have gotten away with this crime but he couldn’t resist bragging about it. He allegedly paid $50,000 to recruit someone with same last name as the incumbent – and then made the mistake of using social media chat (preserved in perpetuity by a third party) to offer the guy money not only to run, but also to change from NPA to Republican. This was made possible by a loophole in election rules: party-affiliated candidates must wait a year before running as a candidate of their new party, while NPAs do not. NPAs can select a party affiliation the day before they submit their papers to run for office. And this was exactly what was done in South Florida and has been done in other Florida elections.

So, which of these two issues deserved immediate attention this session? Clearly it’s the second. Bad actors like Artiles threaten our democracy; voting by mail expands participation in our democracy. But where are elected officials in Tallahassee devoting attention? They are changing a well-functioning process and sowing unwarranted skepticism about the security of our elections.

I anticipate that the Elections Bill (SB90) will make no difference in the security of our elections with the exception of Brandes’ thoughtful amendment. It will make it slightly harder for folks to vote: there will be more hoops to jump through when voting by mail and likely fewer secure ballot drop boxes. But, it will be much more expensive to run elections and this could in turn act to subdue voter turnout.

Lake County Election Supervisor Alan Hayes, a former Republican state senator and president of the Florida Association of Supervisors of Elections, estimated that proposed changes would cost his office $14 to 16 million in 2022. Lake County has a population of 367,118 – about onethird of Pinellas. If expenses are proportionate to Lake County, that adds up to $42 to 48 million. That’s money that could be spent increasing the number of secure ballot drop boxes, maintaining voter outreach programs or expanding early polling places, a long-sought priority for voting rights advocates.

Pinellas, after all, has significantly fewer early voting polling places than our much less populous neighbor Polk County. Exactly how counties will cover these rising costs is unclear.

What is clear is that the issues of legitimate concern are not being addressed by the legislature. Instead, the government is meting out the kind of wholesale upturning of our election processes that sow confusion and distrust.

In just one bill, Tallahassee further erodes home rule and democracy.

Find contacts and more for your local representatives at pinellascounty. org/delegation.

Jennifer Webb