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A Tallahassee trial judge on Monday tossed out a lawsuit seeking to stop the DeSantis administration from using state resources to convince voters to defeat Amendment 4.
Circuit Judge Jonathan Sjostrom in a nine-page ruling said that the group pushing Amendment 4, Floridians Protecting Freedom, lacked standing to file the lawsuit.
Sjostrom also contended that no person or entity had the right to challenge the actions of the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) while the campaign to pass the amendment — which would guarantee access to abortion to the point of viability — is underway.
“The constitution does not suggest a basis for the courts to intervene in the campaign by deciding which arguments for and against the proposal are meritorious or misleading,” wrote Sjostrom, first appointed to the bench by then-Gov. Jeb Bush.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and Southern Legal Counsel issued a statement discussing their disappointment with the ruling which allows AHCA to continue its campaign against Amendment 4.
“This decision is a blow to democracy and reproductive freedom. By allowing AHCA to continue spreading falsehoods, the court is enabling government agencies to interfere with the people’s right to a fair and honest election,” Michelle Morton, staff attorney at the ACLU of Florida, said in a statement to the Florida Phoenix.
“We will continue fighting to ensure that Floridians have the chance to vote on Amendment 4 based on facts, not fearmongering. We won’t stop advocating for the rights of Floridians to make personal health decisions free from government manipulation,” she said.
DeSantis talking points
AHCA earlier this month launched a website that contends that passage of Amendment 4 would threaten the safety of women if passed by voters. Then the agency put out radio and television ads directing people to the website. Those comments mirror talking points from Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republican leaders.
The ACLU and Southern Legal Counsel filed the lawsuit challenging the action and sought a temporary injunction to block AHCA.
During a court hearing last week, attorneys for Floridians Protecting Freedom contended that the effort by the DeSantis administration violated the public’s right to amend the Florida Constitution, an “exercise of balancing the power and the rights of the people against the government.”
AHCA had countered that the webpage educates the public about the amendment and doesn’t mislead the voters.
‘More damage would be done’
Sjostrom in his decision ruled that those who sued had not produced evidence that AHCA was spending money on the ads or any evidence that voters were being misled.
“More damage would likely be done to the public interest were the courts to intervene, unfettered by meaningful evidence, in the final weeks of a contentious election on matters of great public interest and controversy,” he wrote. “The judiciary must trust the people to decide what information is important to them.”
The decision doesn’t put an end to the controversy, since a Palm Beach County attorney has also challenged AHCA’s actions in a direct petition to the Florida Supreme Court.
But the ruling comes just as many voters across the state are about to receive mail-in ballots ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
Hotly contested amendment
The abortion access initiative is one of the most hotly contested proposed amendments Florida voters will consider. DeSantis and Republican leaders have used their muscle to oppose the proposed amendment, which, if approved by 60% of the voters, would ban government interference with abortion up to the point of viability, or about 24 weeks’ gestation.
It would set aside Florida’s six-week abortion ban, signed into law by DeSantis before his failed presidential campaign.
Daniel Marshall, attorney for Southern Legal Counsel, said he was troubled by the outcome of the ruling.
“We believe the government should not have the power to use taxpayer resources to mislead voters, especially on an issue as important as reproductive freedom,” he said.
“Today’s decision undermines the integrity of our democratic process by allowing a state agency to interfere in a citizen-led initiative. While we are disappointed by the court’s decision, we remain committed to fighting for the rights of Floridians to participate in free and fair elections. Voters deserve truthful, transparent information, and we will continue to work to ensure they receive it,” he said in a statement to the Florida Phoenix.
Jackie Llanos contributed to this report.