Nearly a million voters were removed from Florida's voter rolls last year, prompting speculation about what impact it will have on the 2024 election.
According to the Florida Department of State, as of Nov. 30, the number of active registered voters in the Sunshine State has decreased by 996,676 voters from 2022 to 2023.
The Florida Democratic Party's active registered voters fell by 467,337 voters, or nearly 10 percent. The number of active registered voters in the Republican portion of Florida fell by 153,369, or about three percent.
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the total number of voters removed from voter rolls is expected to increase due to routine list maintenance following the collection of December data.
But the decline in registered voters is worrisome for some as this year's election season begins, as people brace for a highly contentious presidential race and hot-button issues like abortion are expected to appear on the state's ballot.
The number of active registered voters in the Sunshine State fell by nearly 1 million from 2022 to 2023. The two women pictured set up a voter registration booth on St. Augustine Beach in Florida in 2020
Broward County, the state's second-largest county, had a total of 1.3 million registered voters from November 2022 to November 2023, then dropped to 1.1 million in December, according to the Broward County Supervisors of Elections.
In Palm Beach County, the elections data regulator shows the total number of registered voters increased from 946,189 in September to 847,617 in October.
The decline in voter numbers appears to be due to the routine maintenance of registration lists carried out by each county election official and required by the state.
Florida state law states: “The supervisor shall implement a general registration roll maintenance program to protect the integrity of the election process by ensuring the maintenance of accurate and current voter registration records in the statewide voter registration system.”
“A registration list maintenance program must be conducted by each supervisor at least annually, beginning no later than April 1 and must be completed at least 90 days before the date of a federal election.”
In 2023, the state parliament passed new laws, which are probably the reason for the sharp increase in numbers.
Supervisors are required to send notices to voters who did not vote in the last two general elections. If these voters do not respond, they will be moved to the inactive list.
“You have to do something to let us know that you are still here and that you intend to continue to attend and vote.” “They are going to be reactive,” said Broward Elections Director Joe Scott.
“This group of people will essentially become ineligible if they don't participate in anything until December 2026, then they will no longer be eligible.” There's the 24 (election) cycle and the 26 cycle.
A ballot initiative that would enshrine abortion rights in the Florida Constitution reached the required number of verified signatures to qualify for the 2024 ballot.
The drop in voter numbers appears to be due to a routine registration list that places people who have not voted in the last two elections on inactive status. Voters pictured stand in line to cast their ballot in Palm Harbor, Florida, on October 27, 2020
The decline in registered voters is concerning for some ahead of the 2024 election season. General polling station pictured
One TikTok user speculated that the purge of voter rolls in the state could be related to the ballot initiative not passing.
In April, Florida governor and presidential candidate Ron DeSantis signed a law banning abortions in the sixth week of pregnancy in the Sunshine State.
“That’s because they know that in 2024, Florida women will be signing the right to abortion into the Constitution here in the state of Florida,” said TikTok user Chasing Oz.
Fact-checking organization PolitiFact said, “County election officials must follow state law to remove voters from the active list, and voters on the inactive list will be marked for removal years later.”
“A question about protecting abortion rights may have appeared on the November ballot, but there is no evidence that this influenced election officials who updated voter rolls.”