Critics say Gov. Ron DeSantis' new election crimes unit is being used to suppress and intimidate Black voters - just as they had feared. On multiple fronts, the election crimes unit is a political winner for DeSantis.
They imposed poll taxes that disproportionately affected newly freed but still desperately poor Black Americans. They passed"grandfather" clauses that limited voting to those whose grandfathers could vote, a tactic sure to exclude Black citizens whose grandparents had been enslaved. And they tweaked felon voting rights restrictions with a new goal: keeping Black citizens away from the polls.
And, notwithstanding the protestations of those who argue that felon disenfranchisement is a color-blind punishment, its disparate impacts are clear. There is no statewide database of Floridians who have been released from prison after serving time for a felony conviction. That makes it impossible to say with certainty that a law barring felons from voting is, essentially, a law targeting Black people.
Just as it can be deduced who makes up the bulk of Florida's felon population, the interplay of race and voting patterns is also clear. He won election in 2018, defeating his Democratic opponent, Andrew Gillum, by fewer than 33,000 votes out of more than 8.2 million cast. Many felons, voting rights advocates argued, couldn't afford to pay the fines and fees, and some couldn't even find out how much they still owed.
Passage of Amendment 4 received heavy, sustained news coverage. The successful court fight that led to its significant curtailment received much less coverage. SB 7066's author, state Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, tweeted that the intent of those seeking to register to vote should be assessed in making prosecutorial decisions.
“That the Director of the Division of Elections cannot say who is eligible makes clear that some voters also will not know,” Hinkle wrote.Still, Florida needs to be able to tell applicants if they are eligible to vote, Volz said.
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