Anti-abortion and pro-abortion people rally outside of the Florida Supreme Court on Feb. 7, 2024, after the oral argument on the proposed amendment to enshrine abortion-rights in the Florida Constitution. (Photo by Jackie Llanos/Florida Phoenix)
Following the defeat of the proposed amendment that would have enshrined abortion access in Florida’s Constitution, the outstanding legal disputes surrounding the measure are winding down.
The four women who filed suit in state trial court accusing Floridians Protecting Freedom, the sponsor of Amendment 4, of fraud in the petition-gathering process dropped their suits on Wednesday, as first reported by the News Service of Florida. The abortion opponents wanted the courts to stop votes for the amendment from being counted.
However, Amendment 4 failed to get the 60% approval from voters needed for it to pass — it received 57% approval.
Former Florida Supreme Court Justice Alan Lawson represented the four women from St. Lucie and Taylor counties who claimed the amendment hadn’t gathered enough signatures to qualify for the Nov. 5 ballot. Their claim of fraud in the petition-gathering process, which Floridians Protecting Freedom vehemently denied, stemmed from an Oct. 11 preliminary report from the state’s Office of Elections Crime and Security.
They had also named Gov. Ron DeSantis, Attorney General Ashley Moody, and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis as defendants based on their roles as members of the state Elections Canvassing Commission, which certifies the election results.
Chief Judge Mark Walker of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida meanwhile has indicated that another suit involving the amendment doesn’t have much substance since the election ended. Walker had issued and extended a temporary order barring the Florida Department of Health from continuing its threats against broadcasters airing a Yes on 4 ad.
But he refused to maintain the bar because Floridians Protecting Freedom didn’t intend to air the ad after Nov. 5, nor could the group show that the health department would take action after the election, Walker wrote in an order denying the preliminary injunction on Nov. 6.
Brian Barnes, the attorney representing Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, who oversees the Department of Health, requested an extension until Dec. 4 to decide whether to ask for the dismissal of the case.