The U.S. Supreme Court refused to overturn a federal appeals court’s decision that blocked some Florida felons’ eligibility to participate in elections. The Washington Post calls it a major blow to restoring voting rights to as many as 1.4 million people in the battleground state. The ruling lets stand a temporary halt by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit judge’s order that had cleared the way for hundreds of thousands of felons to register to vote. The Campaign Legal Center, the American Civil Liberties Union and others asked the high court to lift the stay, arguing that the appeals court decision had “thrown the election rules into chaos.” On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court denied that request. Three liberal justices dissented, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor writing that the court’s order “prevents thousands of otherwise eligible voters from participating in Florida’s primary election simply because they are poor.”
The majority did not state a reason for its action. Paul Smith of the Campaign Legal Center said he was “deeply disappointed” with the order. “Florida’s voters spoke loud and clear when nearly two-thirds of them supported rights restoration at the ballot box in 2018,” he said. “The Supreme Court stood by as the Eleventh Circuit prevented hundreds of thousands of otherwise eligible voters from participating in Florida’s primary election simply because they can’t afford to pay fines and fees.” It’s unclear whether the issue will be resolved in time for the November presidential election or whether the final ruling will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. The appeals court has scheduled a hearing on the issue for Aug. 18, the same day as Florida’s primary election.