Justice Renatha Francis (left) and Meredith Sasso (right) via Florida Supreme Court.
Florida voters Tuesday night retained two justices of the state Supreme Court. Justice Renatha Francis drew slightly more than 63% support and Justice Meredith Sasso more than 62% on the simple question of whether they should continue to serve on the state’s highest court.
Both justices were appointed Gov. Ron DeSantis. Francis and Sasso both opposed efforts to allow proposed amendments to enshrine abortion rights in the Florida Constitution and to allow adult recreational use of marijuana. Both justices supported Florida’s six-week abortion ban.
Barring retirement, they will face another merit retention vote in 2030. They are paid $258,957 annually for their service.
Since 1976, under a merit-retention system, Florida has required Supreme Court justices to be placed on the ballot in the first general election following their appointment, and, if retained by a majority of the voters, every six years thereafter. The races are required by law to be nonpartisan.
Tuesday’s results aren’t surprising, given voters have never voted to reject a sitting justice. A Florida Phoenix review of election results shows that Supreme Court Justice Jorge LaBarga, who continues to serve on the court, was retained in 2010 by 59% of the voters, the lowest vote for any justice and a smidge less than the 59.6% approval rate Justice Leander Shaw received in 1990.
Francis earned her law degree from the now-shuttered Florida Coastal School of Law in Jacksonville in 2010. DeSantis initially moved to appoint her to the Florida Supreme Court in 2020, but the court refused to seat her — she was ineligible because she had not been a member of the Florida Bar for 10 years. DeSantis subsequently appointed her to the high court in 2022. Before her appointment, Francis served as a circuit judge in Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties.
Sasso received her law degree from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2008. She joined former Gov. Rick Scott’s administration in 2016 in the Office of General Counsel. She was later appointed by Scott to the 5th District Court of Appeal. DeSantis shifted her to the 6th District Court of Appeal on Jan. 1, 2023. Four months later, DeSantis appointed her to the Florida Supreme Court.