Supreme Court rules Florida can block ex-felons from voting

Opponents say governor's measure amounts to voter suppression as formerly incarcerated people prohibiting from voting without first paying fines

Thousands of formerly incarcerated people in Florida can be denied the ability to vote, the US Supreme Court has decided, allowing the state to block a landmark re-enfranchisement effort supported by a majority of voters in 2018.

The nation's high court denied a request to lift an order that blocked a lower-court ruling, which would have prevented people in Florida who have been convicted of certain felonies from voting if they have not paid associated fines and fees.

Dissenting justices Sonya Sotomayor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Elena Kagan said that the ruling "prevents thousands of otherwise eligible voters from participating in Florida's primary election simply because they are poor."

The order arrived just days before a 20 July registration deadline for the state's August primary.

"This court's inaction continues a trend of condoning disenfranchisement," Justice Sotomayor wrote.

She said that "under this scheme, nearly a million otherwise-eligible citizens cannot vote" unless they first pass through a "voter paywall".

More than two-thirds of Florida voters approved an amendment to the states's constitution to allow most ex-felons, except for those convicted of murder or felony sexual offences, the ability to register to vote. Since the measure went into effect in January 2019, roughly 85,000 formerly incarcerated people have registered.

But Republican Governor Ron DeSantis stymied the law by putting in place a "pay-to-vote" policy that requires ex-felons to pay associated fines, fees and monetary penalties associated with their conviction.

Voting rights groups have argued that the law amounts to voter suppression.

Most states allow ex-felons to register to vote after the completion of their sentences as well as parole and probation conditions. Florida is among a dozen states with more prohibitive rules in place.

US District Judge Robert Hinkle struck down the law in May, however, citing the "administrative nightmare" that would result from trying to pin what fees are owed, effectively creating an unconstitutional poll tax through a "pay-to-vote" system.

But the US Court of Appeals blocked the judge's ruling and set a hearing date for 18 August – which is also the date of the state's presidential primary election.

The deadline to register to vote in time for that election is on Monday.

Voting rights advocates have challenged that the Supreme Court ruling and the law, if upheld, could have a significant impact ahead of a fierce November election, with thousands of potential new voters on the rolls, potentially upsetting Republican control in a key electoral state.

"The Supreme Court stood by and let a lower court prevent otherwise eligible voters from participating in Florida's primary election simply because they can't afford to pay fines and fees," said Florida's Campaign Legal Centre. "This is a deeply disappointing decision, but the fight goes on to protect voter eligibility for the general election, which will be determined by the ultimate outcome of the case."