The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, by a vote of 10 of its 12 judges, said that it would take up the matter “en banc” — or as a committee of the whole — next month. In the meantime, it stayed enforcement of U.S. District Court Judge Robert Hinkle’s May ruling clearing the way for many former felons to register and vote.
“It’s becoming, I think, probably very confusing for people who are trying to decide whether they can get registered to vote or not,” said Mark Earley, supervisor of elections for Leon County.
Local officials were trying to figure out what’s going on. An unknown number of former offenders have registered to vote under guidelines Hinkle established, Earley said.
“Where do they stand now? Do they have to unregister?” he wondered. “There’s no way for us to just take people back off the rolls.”
The 11th Circuit reportedly set a hearing date for Aug. 11 — a week before the Aug. 18 primaries and well after the July 20 deadline to register to participate
DeSantis is doing all he can to deliver Florida to Trump.
DeSantis vowed to appeal Hinkle’s ruling, saying at the time, “No other court in the country has held this.” (That wasn’t strictly true — see the 11th Circuit three-judge panel ruling.)
Among the appellate judges who voted to hear the case were Barbara Lagoa and Robert Luck, who were appointed to the Florida Supreme Court by DeSantis and soon after were elevated to the federal appeals court. Two judges recused themselves from the decision.
Advocates for felon re-enfranchisement vowed to fight on.
John Lewis is gone but his vision should inspire us all to not let this happen.
The next move after the 11th Court of Appeals decision in Atlanta will be to the Supreme Court. Too little, too late possibly for this outrage when the people of Florida clearly voted the right to vote be restored by Amendment 4.
In May, a federal judge in Tallahassee ruled that Florida law can’t stop an estimated 774,000 disenfranchised felons from voting because they can’t pay back any legal fees and restitution they owe. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle called the law a “pay-to-vote system.”
But Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis immediately appealed that ruling to the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, requesting a stay of Hinkle's ruling and a review of the case by the full appeals court.De
DeSantis is the worst. I never thought anyone could beat Scott. I was wrong.