The Republican National Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee, and the Republican Party of Florida secured a victory for election integrity by reaching a settlement in Nielsen v. DeSantis on Sunday. Earlier this year, plaintiffs sued Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to radically alter Florida's absentee ballot laws to allow ballot harvesting and require absentee ballots that arrive after Election Day to be counted. As part of the settlement agreement, plaintiffs dropped all substantive claims in the suit.
On Sunday, RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel weighed in on the victory:
Today’s victory is a win for Florida voters and a win for election integrity. Democrats’ assault on our elections process is not based on fact or reason, which is why they are dismissing every claim in their radical suit. The RNC will continue to step in and fight back against Democrat attempts to circumvent existing law and weaken our elections process.
Republican Party of Florida Chairman(RPOF) Joe Gruters also weighed in:
Floridians choosing to vote-by-mail must have confidence that their vote will be safe and secure. RPOF intervened in this lawsuit to protect Florida’s vote-by-mail safeguards that were under attack by Democrat special interests. We are glad that the Democrat-aligned organizations finally saw the light and dropped their lawsuit. We are pleased Florida’s strong laws will remain in place for 2020 when Florida reelects President Trump.
As part of the settlement, Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee agreed to take additional efforts to educate voters and election officials, similar to what is done every election cycle. Despite the rejection of the radical nature of demands in the original suit, parties connected to the case, like prominent liberal attorney Marc Elias, make it seem like the settlement reflects their original intent.
While it was not a "win" for Elias or the left, lawsuits like Nielsen v. DeSantis are part of a concerted effort by the Left to use litigation to disrupt the 2020 elections.
In response, the Republican National Committee has launched its own initiative, Protect the Vote, to fight back against the Left's assault on election integrity. To find out more about the Nielsen case and other election litigation, visit protectthevote.com. Thank you to all for helping Florida Voters win!