A legal battle is brewing over the DeSantis’ administration’s opposition to a proposal that would enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution.
A political committee leading efforts to pass a constitutional amendment on abortion rights—Amendment 4 on voters’ November general election ballot—has filed a lawsuit alleging that the state Agency for Health Care Administration is using a website and ads to spread “misinformation” about the November ballot measure.
The lawsuit, filed in Leon County circuit court by attorneys for the Floridians Protecting Freedom committee, seeks a temporary injunction to prevent the agency from continuing to disseminate the information online and through television and radio ads.
“In educating the electorate about the purpose and ramifications of a proposed constitutional amendment, the government cannot do so in a manner that is inaccurate, misleading, abusive, or fraudulent,” the lawsuit said. “AHCA’s actions regarding Amendment 4 (the abortion rights amendment) … have been inaccurate, misleading, abusive and fraudulent.”
This past week, a Leon County circuit judge Monday refused to issue the temporary injunction , stating, the case is “not justiciable by courts because political power is reserved to the people in an election by means of each ballot.”
“No person or entity has standing to litigate these issues in court during this campaign,” Judge Jonathan Sjostrom wrote. “The fact finder must be each voter who will choose the information the voter finds convincing and render judgment on each ballot.”
Basically, Florida’s voters will be being the right to choose on the right to choose.
The lawsuit came two days after Palm Beach County attorney Adam Richardson filed a case at the Florida Supreme Court about the agency information. Richardson asked the Supreme Court to issue what is known as a writ of quo warranto to Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Jason Weida, DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody “forbidding them from misusing or abusing their offices to interfere with the election for Amendment 4, and to unravel whatever actions they have already taken to do so.”
DeSantis has compared the website to a public service announcement providing “people with accurate information.”
The governor also defended investigators questioning people who signed petitions what will appear on the ballot as Amendment 4.
“It may be that the signature is totally different, and that voter will say, ‘No, I actually did do that,’” DeSantis said. “Maybe they signed their name. That is absolutely possible. And if that’s what you say, I think that’s probably the end of it.”
In a conference call with reporters, Lauren Brenzel, campaign director for the Yes on 4 campaign, called the signature investigation a “distraction,” noting the petitions were verified by elections officials after being submitted.
The proposed ballot amendment, says, in part, that no “law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.”
A political committee leading efforts to pass a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights raised about $1.145 million from Sept. 1420, while spending about $7.693 million, according to a newly filed finance report.
Floridians Protecting Freedom started a drive to pass the amendment last year, after Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-controlled Legislature approved a bill that prevents abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. Contributions included $1 million from one Boca Raton resident.
