Florida Gov. Ron Desandis Election Police Announce 20 Arrests For Voter Fraud

The move was billed as the “jump start” for the Office of Election Crime and Security, created by DeSantis and approved by the Florida Legislature. Some fear the office could discourage minorities and other communities from voting. The office began its work on July 1. DeSantis said the twenty people arrested were all guilty of either murder or sexual assault and were mostly from Miami-Dade and Broward counties. He added that he was not among those whose voting rights were restored by “Amendment 4,” a ballot measure passed overwhelmingly in 2018 that restores voting rights to felons in the state, except those convicted of rape or murder. “They didn’t go through any process. They didn’t have their rights restored and yet they went ahead and voted anyway. That’s against the law and now they’re going to pay the price for it,” DeSantis said at a news conference. Thursday. “These people we’re watching — they’re outside the 4th Amendment.” The potential penalty is up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. DeSantis also said the Office of Election Crime and Security will also look into voters who were undocumented when they voted in 2020. Just under 11 million Floridians voted in 2020. “This is just the first step,” DeSantis said. “There will be foreign nationals. We want the federal government to work constructively on that, and so far, that hasn’t happened. We have an obligation to make sure U.S. citizens vote.” Cecile Scoon, president of the nonpartisan Florida League of Women Voters, said there are still open questions about the voter crime office, such as how law enforcement will be used and whether their presence will be felt at the polls. “It’s a potentially threatening world. They feel this police — how are they going to be used? Are they going to stand over people’s shoulders?” he said. Scoon added that he is concerned that after DeSantis recently fired State’s Attorney Andrew Warren, that supervisors and election officials could be next. “That was a red flag for me. Because he had removed one person from the office, there was concern about what’s next? What’s going on?” Scoon said. News of the arrests comes at a time when many Republicans still believe there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election, a claim perpetuated by former President Donald Trump. A July CBS News poll found that 69 percent of Republicans believe there was widespread voter fraud in 2020, despite the rejection of nearly 70 legal challenges, according to the Stanford-MIT Healthy Elections Project.
“We must have elected leaders who ensure free and fair elections and also assure our public and citizens that they can have confidence in the election process,” said Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd. “I’m sure that will allay fears that behind the scenes, within the state government, people are ignoring violations of the law. That’s not the case.” Many Republican candidates on the ballot in November have indicated they have doubts about the legitimacy of the 2020 election, including at least nine of the 24 candidates for secretary of state, often the top election official in the state, according to CBS News. analysis. DeSantis has often said Florida’s 2020 election was very safe and praised the state’s quick ballot count, compared to other battleground states that took much longer. But he has also shared the stage with candidates who believe the election was stolen, such as Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano. “A potential 2024 presidential contender, DeSantis is up for re-election this fall. Florida’s primary is Tuesday, August 23, but he is running unopposed.”

Aaron Navarro