Civil rights groups have filed a lawsuit against Florida in an effort to reopen the state's voter registration window. They argue that the October 7 deadline was problematic as it was 'sandwiched between two life-threatening obstacles,' forcing residents to choose between seeking safety from hurricanes and registering to vote.
Southern states affected by Hurricane Helene are under pressure from voting and civil rights groups to extend the voter registration deadline due to the devastation caused by the storm and the disruption caused by Hurricane Milton, expected to make landfall in Florida on Wednesday.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, both Republicans, have resisted calls to extend the voter registration deadline. However, South Carolina has extended its deadline by more than a week to accommodate those affected by Helene.
The League of Women Voters of Florida and the Florida NAACP filed a lawsuit against DeSantis and Secretary of State Cord Byrd, seeking a temporary block on enforcing the October 7 deadline and requesting an additional ten days for voter registration in Florida.
The civil rights groups' attorneys stated in the lawsuit that tens of thousands of Florida residents were denied the opportunity to register to vote this year due to the hurricanes. They highlighted the challenges faced by residents in accessing means of voter registration, such as government offices, roads, the Internet, and postal services, which were shut down multiple times in the weeks leading up to the deadline.
In Georgia, a federal judge is set to hold a hearing on a similar lawsuit brought by civil rights groups regarding the voter registration deadline in the state, which is considered a critical battleground in the upcoming elections.
