Anita Smith, 37, of Gainesville, Fla., updates her address at an Alachua County voter registration drive on April 21, 2012. Voter outreach departments at several county offices stepped up registration efforts after groups such as the League of Women Voters suspended their drives in 2011. Photo by Ethan Magoc/News21
After a 13-month hiatus, the League of Women Voters of Florida and Rock the Vote are again registering Florida voters.
In May 2011, the two groups stopped registration drives, which League President Deirdre Macnab said was the group’s most popular activity, because of the passage of HB 1355, a controversial elections bill that required voters to turn in completed registration forms within 48 hours.
In December, the groups filed federal suit in Tallahassee to block the 48-hour registration provision. A judge granted that injunction last Thursday, returning the registration form deadline to 10 days.
That prompted today’s announcement in Orlando.
“Now it’s time for our volunteers to work overtime to make up for lost ground,” Macnab said.
Proponents of the law, including Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Michael Ertel, have said the League’s decision to end registration drives was a publicity stunt.
“I said (to the League), ‘Please don’t cancel the drives. We will go to your drive, allow you to do the voter registration and handle it immediately,” he said Jan. 31 at a U.S. Senate Tampa hearing.
By Ethan Magoc, News21