It’s no longer a misdemeanor to tamper with ballots in Florida. The sunshine state will lock up violators and throw away the key.
Under the 2021 laws, possessing two or more ballots was a misdemeanor. Now, it will be a felony conviction that carries up to five years in prison and a $50,000 fine.
Governor DeSantis can’t wait to sign the bill into law. If only the rest of the country would follow suit. We need to instill integrity into our elections. Although this bill isn’t enough, Florida is off to a good start.
MSN continues:
The ballot felony is just one part of a bill that aims to reform certain elements of Florida elections. The legislation would also establish a first-of-its-kind elections police force for the U.S., which has raised concerns about its possible impact on voters, the Post reported.
In a November press release that announced his intention to propose the legislation, DeSantis said that the measures were aimed at bolstering “election integrity” in the state.
“I am excited that with this legislation, our state will be able to enforce election violations, combat voter fraud and make sure violators are held accountable,” he said in a statement. “If potential violators know they will be held accountable, they will be much less likely to engage in improper conduct in the first place.”
DeSantis’ office is “looking forward” to the bill landing on his desk, a spokesperson told Newsweek.
“We’re very excited and thank the Legislature for delivering on Governor DeSantis’ election security initiative. The Legislature carried out our goal of making it easier to vote and harder to cheat,” the spokesperson said.
The Crackdown
It’s well past time that election security be taken seriously. Again, Florida is off to a good start, but to be honest, this is merely a drop in the bucket considering the amount of fraud that has happened, especially in our most recent election years.
DeSantis proposed plans for the police force about two months ago, but the measure passed Wednesday by the GOP-led House and Senate has some key differences. The governor had requested almost $6 million to hire a force of 52 people, but instead he will be allotted about $2.5 million to hire 25 staffers for the new Office of Election Crimes and Security.
Joe Scott, the Broward County elections supervisor, said the bill was “drastically improved” from DeSantis’ original proposal. But the Democrat added that he still believes the state shouldn’t have an elections force, according to the Post.
The misdemeanor-to-felony boost for possessing more than two ballots has also been criticized.
“We’re going to convict people of a felony because they helped three instead of two elderly neighbors?” Democratic state Representative Joseph Geller asked while arguing against the legislation Wednesday.
Under the bill, election supervisors would have to cull voter rolls (or sift out names) every year rather than every two years. Switching the party registration of a voter without the person’s authorization would bring a $1,000 fine, the Post reported.
Ballot drop boxes will be renamed “secure ballot intake stations” when the bill becomes law.
There’s just one thing missing.
It seems lawmakers neglected one process. There needs to be a better way to challenge election results. Further, we need streamlined processes to remove a person from office once voter fraud is found. It is perhaps the main reason the Big Cheat has yet to be acknowledged by the left.
Think about it. After seeing our economy crash, the growing border crisis, the embarrassing withdrawal from Afghanistan, Biden’s spineless reaction to war between Russia and Ukraine, rising grocery and gas prices, and the continuation of the scamdemic, we know Democrats have buyer’s remorse. So why won’t they admit it? Because no one’s made a solid plan of what to do. It seems like common sense– call Trump back. But for how long? The remaining three years of Biden’s term? Or four fresh Trump years? The logistics here are somewhat confusing.
It’s time we work out the plan, because America can only take so many hits before it’s knocked out for good.
