A federal judge in Orlando dismissed a lawsuit filed by Florida Rising Together that challenged Florida's "exact match" voter registration requirements, securing a major election integrity-related victory for the Florida Republican Party.
The lawsuit challenged the Florida law requiring citizens to verify their identity if their details don't exactly match government databases.
"This action seeks declaratory and injunctive relief to stop an administrative policy employed by the Florida Department of State, Florida Attorney General, and Supervisors of Elections that creates an illegal precondition to voter registration that, if not enjoined, will unlawfully disenfranchise tens of thousands of eligible Florida voters, the vast majority of whom are people of color," the lawsuit informs.
According to the lawsuit, the policy is a "leading reason" voter registration applicants don't make it on to the voter rolls.
The judge ruled that the advoacy groups that filed the lawsuit didn't establish the legal standing required to bring the case to federal court because they didn't identify a specific person who was prevented from voting by the policy.
"At this stage of the case, the focus is not on the merits. Instead, the question is a threshold one: Does this case present the type of case or controversy that the Constitution gives this Court the power to adjudicate? For reasons detailed below, the answer is no," the order dismissing the case stated.
The Republican Party of Florida celebrated the legal victory through a press release today.
"Making sure people are who they say they are when they register to vote is about as commonsense as it gets," Chairman Evan Power said in a statement. "Left-wing activists tried to tear down a basic safeguard that helps keep Florida’s elections secure, and they could not point to a single person who was unable to register because of it. The Republican Party of Florida intervened to stop that attack, and we will keep defending the laws that protect accurate voter rolls and ensure only eligible citizens vote in our elections."
