Judge dismisses case against Florida over voter registration process, signature requirement

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Judge Allen Winsor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida granted a motion to dismiss a case against Florida’s voter registration process on Monday.

Several voter rights advocacy groups filed the case against Florida and the 67 county supervisor of election offices.

The voter rights advocacy groups, including the NAACP and Vote.org, filed the case in order to challenge Florida’s voter registration signature authentication requirement.

The groups sought for Florida’s law to comply with a federal law that prevents any states from using “immaterial errors or omissions to deny the right to vote.”

They also argued that forcing individuals to provide “original signatures” was too restrictive and disenfranchising.

”Plaintiffs’ entire premise is that a copied, faxed, or otherwise non-original signature is equal in stature to an original, wet signature. But we know this not to be so,” Winsor wrote in his decisions.

“In Plaintiffs’ view, federal law requires states to accept photocopies, facsimiles, electronic checkmarks, or something other than an original signature,” Winsor added.

He mentioned that the Materiality Provision, the federal law the plaintiffs are citing, does not allow for these types of signatures.

The provision was necessary to help those who may have become disenfranchised for resolving their wrong date of birth during the era of literacy tests.

The groups have 14 days to respond why the claims should not be dismissed.

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office said President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice opposed the motion to dismiss.