Although Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D) lost the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in August, Commissioner Fried affirms that she's still committed to pushing back against the DeSantis administration. This week, Fried issued a request to the Department of State, calling for an investigation into alleged "ineligible voters" that were still on the rolls.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has prided himself on pursuing election integrity ahead of the upcoming midterm election, but his political rivals are questioning his efforts.
Taking to social media, the Florida Democrat announced that she had "requested the Inspector General of Florida's Dept. of State to investigate why the agency, overseen by Ron DeSantis, failed to remove ineligible voters from the rolls as required by law, and then arrested and used ineligible voters as a prop to suppress legal voters."
I just requested the Inspector General of Florida’s Dept. of State to investigate why the agency, overseen by @RonDeSantisFL, failed to remove ineligible voters from the rolls as required by law, and then arrested and used ineligible voters as a prop to suppress legal voters. pic.twitter.com/qQO5X8NCb3
— Nikki Fried (@NikkiFried) September 6, 2022
Shortly after conceding the August 23rd primary, Fried called for Democrats to rally behind Florida Rep. Charlie Crist (D), and she assured supporters that she would help unseat Governor DeSantis in November.
Echoing other Democrats, Fried has called the DeSantis administration an authoritarian administration, and in a letter issued to the Inspector General, Fried harkens back to the comparison.
"I am writing to express my serious concerns regarding the arrests of 20 Floridians and the punitive pursuit of criminal charges against individuals who were led to believe they were eligible to vote and had their voter registration applications approved by state elections officials," Fried begins in the letter, adding that "given it is the responsibility of the Florida Department of State's Division of Elections responsibility to identify applicants who are eligible to vote and those that are not qualified to do so, I am also concerned by the newly-created Florida Office of Election Crimes and Security's decision to go after the individuals who voted without intent to break the law rather than looking into how they applications were approved in the first place."
