Reply #242: FL HB 1355 ALEC Voter Disenfranchisement X2 about to Pass with Fight [View All]

Supporters of the measure (HB 1355) portrayed the bill — which stands at more than 4,000 lines after the approval of some Republican amendments — as an effort to tighten up standards and cut off potential fraud allegations ahead of an expected close presidential election in 2012.

“Our greatest responsibility is to protect the integrity of this process so the result has credibility,” said Rep. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, the measure’s sponsor.

(break)

At that event, Leon County Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho blasted the bill as a copy of a model distributed by the American Legislative Exchange Council, a conservative, D.C.-based organization that provides a slate of suggested legislation to members.

“Every state that has a Republican Legislature is doing this, from Maine to Florida,” Sancho said. “This is a national effort.”

Baxley brushed aside that allegation after the vote, saying the measure was “built in the House” after discussions with staffers and elections supervisors, who have so far opposed the measure.

“I’ve never talked to about it,” Baxley said.