Thursday, May 31, 2012

Florida's Voter Purge, Whats Wrong with Florida?

Satirical Demography Of Florida
Sadly, I used to live in Florida, so I know just how messed up the state is...

If you check out the picture on the right, it pretty much sums up the demography of the state.

As you can see, the state is pretty heavily taken up by Hicks, some sane people in Orlando, and then swamp people who make the hicks look like sophisticated Englishmen.

Now of course it is a generalization and very satirical, I know plenty of people who do not fit into this, but then plenty who do....

The voter purge in Florida is sadly just the tip of the Iceberg. Back in 2004, when bush was running for president and I was a Republican, Florida was a little bit more subtle about the 'Purge'. You didn't get a letter, you didn't notice of any kind, you just went to vote and found out that you were not eligible... How do I know? Because it happened to my aunt, my aunt who was a registered Democrat.... Perhaps it was a fluke, but more than likely it was an intentional vote suppression.

Now, in 2012, The Florida Republicans are at it again....


HB 1355

HB 1355 was passed last year but luckily blocked by a Federal judge due to it's unconstitutionality.
In blocking the new law, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle wrote:
The statute and rule impose a harsh and impractical 48-hour deadline for an organization to deliver applications to a voter registration office and effectively prohibit an organization from mailing applications in. And the statute and rule impose burdensome record-keeping and reporting requirements that serve little if any purpose, thus rendering them unconstitutional even to the extent they do not violate the NVRA. [...]
The plaintiffs will suffer irreparable harm if an injunction is not issued, first because the denial of a right of this magnitude under circumstances like these almost always inflicts irreparable harm, and second because when a plaintiff loses an opportunity to register a voter, the opportunity is gone forever.

Voter Purge




Florida Governor Rick Scott

There has also been a voter purge under the leadership of Florida Governor Rick Scott. Recently, the state identified more than 180,000 potential noncitizens that will be vetted and possibly removed from voter registration rolls. The practice sparked controversy when a Miami Herald analysis revealed that Hispanic, Democratic and Independent voters are more likely to be on the list. In fact, 58 percent of those identified as potential noncitizens are Hispanic, according to the Herald's review.

Florida Democrats pushed back on the practice earlier this week, calling on Gov. Rick Scott to end the purge. "Given that this process fails to meet basic standards of accountability, and that the legal authority for automatic removal of registered voters is currently being challenged in both state and federal court, it is irresponsible to proceed so quickly and with so little room for oversight," the letter said.




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