A group of Florida’s Supervisors of Elections have signed on to a letter entitled “Our Democracy, Our Priority” where they are asking officials across Florida to ease off of the rhetoric regarding questions of the validity of the 2020 presidential election.
They are asking Floridians to accept the results of the election: that then-President Donald Trump won Florida and President Joe Biden was elected president.
They said “misinformation, misinformation, and malinformation” undermined the American electoral process.
“During and after the 2020 Presidential Election, the integrity of our democracy has been challenged by misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation that sows discord and undermines trust in America’s electoral process. Many of us have been threatened by our fellow citizens who have been led astray by these deceptions.
Instead of standing idly by, we ask all candidates and elected officials to tone down the rhetoric and stand up for our democracy. We ask that you work with us to understand the safeguards implemented to ensure elections are conducted fairly, securely, and accurately.”
Some Florida Republicans have sought to begin a forensic audit of the 2020 presidential election next year, which they say is not about margin of victory, but ensuring a “total verification of election results.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis shot down the possibility of a forensic audit, and Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee said Florida already conducted multiple audits before and after the election.
“Florida’s election in 2020 was accurate, transparent, and conducted in compliance with Florida law,” Lee said. “Florida has already conducted both pre- and post-elections audits, and we are confident in the security and integrity of our 2020 election results.”
As a result of questions arising in the national landscape around the integrity of the presidential election, Republicans in the Florida Legislature passed SB 90, an election integrity bill, based on 2012 grand jury recommendations. The grand jury offered the recommendations to the legislature at the time after they presided over a confirmed voter fraud in Miami-Dade County.
DeSantis signed the bill in May after it was derided by political opponents as a new type of “Jim Crow” intended to suppress voters. However, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled in favor of Arizona election reform laws in July signaling the constitutionality of efforts like Florida.
Concerns of voter fraud in places like Fulton County, Georgia and in Pennsylvania added to the desire for Florida Republicans to ensure Florida’s votes were tabulated correctly without tampering.
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Grant Holcomb is a reporter at The Florida Capital Star and The Star News Network. Follow Grant on Twitter and direct message tips.
