April 1 (UPI) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law Wednesday a state bill similar to the federal Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act. The law will take effect in 2027.
DeSantis said he’s “not anticipating” the federal version to be passed and said the new law will protect the integrity of state elections, The Hill reported.
“Our Constitution in the state of Florida says only American citizens are allowed to vote in our elections, so we need to make sure that is the law,” the Florida governor said during a press conference.
Under the Florida law, residents of retirement communities and college students will not be able to use their IDs from those places to vote. All voters will need to show a birth certificate, Social Security card, passport or other evidence of U.S. citizenship.
“Although Florida has already enacted much of what the federal legislation contemplates, this will further fortify our state as the leader in election integrity,” DeSantis said last week.
Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link said the new law could also create issues for election officials.
“If somebody brings a birth certificate and it’s an Idaho birth certificate, I don’t know what that looks like. Am I supposed to know whether or not that’s a fraudulent birth certificate, or do I just accept it because it says Idaho birth certificate?” Sartory Link told The Hill.
The American Civil Liberties Union has challenged the law on behalf of the League of Women Voters and other voting rights groups. They argue that Florida’s system that confirms citizenship doesn’t capture naturalization.
“This means that U.S. citizens could be erroneously reflected as noncitizens in these databases, as they often are in DHS’s [Department of Homeland Security] SAVE system, and would therefore be flagged for potential disenfranchisement,” the suit said.
The SAVE system also uses data from the Social Security Administration, which doesn’t have citizenship data for people born before the 1970s.
About the Author
