LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS v. FLORIDA SECRETARY, STATE

Nos. 22-11133; 22-11143; 22-11144; 22-11145.

32 F.4th 1363 (2022)

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF FLORIDA, INC., et al., Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. FLORIDA SECRETARY OF STATE, et al., Defendants-Appellants

United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

Filed: May 6, 2022.


Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Jack Genberg , Bradley E. Heard , Caren E. Short , Southern Poverty Law Center, Decatur, GA, Michelle Kanter Cohen , Cecilia Aguilera , Jason David Sherman , Fair Elections Center, Washington, DC, Nancy Gbana Abudu , Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, AL, Debra A. Dandeneau , William H. Devaney, III , Carlton Mine Tarpley , Baker & McKenzie LLP, New York, NY, Brendan D. O'Callaghan , Baker & McKenzie, LLP, Washington, DC, Peter William Shapiro , Baker & McKenzie, LLP, San Francisco, CA, Angela Vigil , Baker McKenzie, LLP, Miami, FL, for Plaintiff-Appellee Harriet Tubman Freedom Fighters Corp.

Nancy Gbana Abudu , Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, AL, Cecilia Aguilera, Michelle Kanter Cohen , Jason David Sherman , Fair Elections Center, Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Head Count, Inc.

Nancy Gbana Abudu , Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, AL, Cecilia Aguilera , Jason David Sherman , Fair Elections Center, Washington, DC, Debra A. Dandeneau , William H. Devaney, III , Carlton Aline Tarpley , Baker & McKenzie LLP, New York, for Plaintiffs-Appellees Paralyzed Veterans of America Florida Chapter, Stephen Kirk.

Nancy Gbana Abudu , Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, AL, Cecilia Aguilera , Jason David Sherman , Fair Elections Center, Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Phyllis Resnick.

Mohammad O. Jazil , Michael Beato , Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak, PLLC, Tallahassee, FL, William David Chappell , Office of the Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL, John J. Cycon , Kenneth Clark Daines , Phillip Michael Gordon , Dallin B. Holt , Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC, Haymarket, VA, Ashley E. Davis , Bradley Robert McVay , Colleen E. O'Brien , Florida Department of State, Tallahassee, FL, Benjamin J. Gibson , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Tallahassee, FL, Tyler Richard Green , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Salt Lake City, UT, for Defendant-Appellee Florida Secretary of State.

Frank Mari , Roper, PA, Orlando, FL, for Defendants-Appellees Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, Desoto County Supervisor of Elections, Flagler County Supervisor of Elections, Gilchrist County Supervisor of Elections, Gulf County Supervisor of Elections, Highlands County Supervisor of Elections, Jefferson County Supervisor of Elections, Madison County Supervisor of Elections.

Karen Ann Brodeen , William Edward Chorba , Bilal Ahmed Faruqui , William H. Stafford, III , Office of the Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL, for Defendant-Appellee Attorney General, State of Florida.

Andre V. Bardos , GrayRobinson, PA, Tallahassee, FL, for Defendants-Appellees Lee County Supervisor of Elections, Lake County Supervisor of Elections.

Tyler Richard Green , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Salt Lake City, UT, Steven Christopher Begakis , Cameron Thomas Norris , Daniel Joseph Shapiro , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Arlington, VA, Benjamin J. Gibson , George N. Meros, Jr. , Daniel Elden Norby , Daniel Nordby , Tara R. Price , Amber Stoner Nunnally , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Tallahassee, FL, Frank Zacherl , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Miami, FL, for Defendant-Appellee National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Tyler Richard Green , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Salt Lake City, UT, Cameron Thomas Norris , Daniel Joseph Shapiro , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Arlington, VA, Benjamin J. Gibson , George N. Meros, Jr. , Daniel Elden Norby , Daniel Nordby , Tara R. Price , Amber Stoner Nunnally , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Tallahassee, FL, Frank Zacherl , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Miami, FL, for Defendant-Appellee Republican National Committee.

Marc Erik Elias , Christina A. Ford , David Robert Fox , Lalitha D. Madduri , Aria Branch , Elisabeth Frost , Francesca Gibson , Elias Law Group, LLP, Washington, DC, Frederick Stanton Wermuth , Thomas A. Zehnder , King Blackwell Zehnder & Wermuth, PA, Orlando, FL, Danielle E. Sivalingam , Perkins Coie LLP, Los Angeles, CA, for Plaintiffs-Appellees League of Women Voters of Florida, League of Women Voters of Florida Education Fund, Inc., Black Voters Matter Fund, Florida Alliance for Retired Americans, Inc., Cecile Scoon, Robert Brigham, Alan Madison.

Marc Erik Elias , Christina A. Ford , David Robert Fox , Lalitha D. Madduri , Aria Branch , Elisabeth Frost , Francesca Gibson , Elias Law Group, LLP, Washington, DC, Frederick Stanton Wermuth , King Blackwell Zehnder & Wermuth, PA, Orlando, FL, Danielle E. Sivalingam , Perkins Coie LLP, Los Angeles, CA, for Plaintiff-Appellee Susan Rogers.

John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Janine Marie Lopez , Elisabeth S. Theodore , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Jeffrey Andrew Miller , Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Brenda Wright , Demos, New York, NY, Aaron Stiefel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, for Plaintiffs-Appellees Florida Rising Together, Unidosus.

John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Jeffrey Andrew Miller , Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Demos, New York, NY, for Plaintiff-Appellee Equal Ground Education Fund.

John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Janine Marie Lopez , Elisabeth S. Theodore , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Jeffrey Andrew Miller , Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Demos, New York, NY, Aaron Stiefel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, for Plaintiff-Appellee Hispanic Federation.

Elisabeth Frost , Elias Law Group, LLP, Washington, DC, Kira Romero-Craft , Brenda Wright , Demos, New York, NY, for Plaintiff-Appellee Faith in Florida.

John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Janine Marie Lopez , Elisabeth S. Theodore , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Elisabeth Frost , Elias Law Group, LLP, Washington, DC, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Jeffrey Andrew Miller , Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Brenda Wright , Demos, New York, NY, Aaron Stiefel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, for Plaintiff-Appellee Poder Latinx.

Morenike Fajana , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Elisabeth Frost , Elias Law Group, LLP, Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Florida State Conference of Branches and Youth Units of the NAACP.

P. Benjamin Duke , Covington & Burling, LLP, New York, NY, Morenike Fajana , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Common Cause.

P. Benjamin Duke , Covington & Burling, LLP, New York, NY, Morenike Fajana , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Elisabeth Frost , Elias Law Group, LLP, Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Disability Rights Florida.

Jack Genberg , Bradley E. Heard , Southern Poverty Law Center, Decatur, GA, Michelle Kanter Cohen , Cecilia Aguilera , Fair Elections Center, Washington, DC, Nancy Ghana Abudu , Southern Poverty Law Center, Montgomery, AL, for Plaintiff-Appellee Harriet Tubman Freedom Fighters Corp.

Leslie Claire Bailey , Samuel Isaac Ferenc , John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Janine Marie Lopez , Elisabeth S. Theodore , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Daniel Ross Bernstein , Ryan D. Budhu , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, Andrew C. Case , Latino Justice PRLDEF, New York, NY, Francisca D. Fajana , National Center for Law and Economic Justice, New York, NY, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Andrew Richard Hirschel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, Jeffrey Andrew Miller , Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Brenda Wright , Demos, New York, NY, Aaron Stiefel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, Sharion Trenell Scott , Advancement Project, Washington, DC, Esperanza Segarra , Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP, Fort Lauderdale, FL, for Plaintiffs-Appellees Haitian Neighborhood Center Sant La, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund.

P. Benjamin Duke , Shira M. Poliak , Covington & Burling, LLP, New York, NY, Benjamin Louis Baer Cavataro , Michael Anthony Fletcher, II , Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Miles Lindsey Galbraith , Jad H. Khazem , Virginia Anne Williamson , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Ellen Choi , Robert D. Fram , Covington & Burling, LLP, San Francisco, CA, Morenike Fajana , Romane De Paul , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Nellie Linn King , West Palm Beach, FL, Cyrus S. Nasseri , Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Florida State Conference of the NAACP.

Tyler Richard Green , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Salt Lake City, UT, Cameron Thomas Norris , Daniel Joseph Shapiro , Steven Christopher Begakis , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Arlington, VA, Benjamin J. Gibson , George N. Meros, Jr. , Daniel Nordby , Tara R. Price , Amber Stoner Nunnally , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Tallahassee, FL, Frank Zacherl , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Miami, FL, for Intervenors-Appellants Republican National Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Henry Charles Whitaker , Karen Ann Brodeen , William Edward Chorba , Bilal Ahmed Faruqui , Rachel Siegel , William H. Stafford, III , Office of the Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL, for Defendant-Appellant Florida Attorney General.

Andre V. Bardos , James Timothy Moore, Jr. , GrayRobinson, PA, Tallahassee, FL, for Defendant-Appellant Lake County Supervisor of Elections for Docket Numbers 22-11143, 22-11144, 22-11145.

P. Benjamin Duke , Covington & Burling, LLP, New York, NY, Benjamin Louis Baer Cavataro , Uttara Dukkipati , Michael Anthony Fletcher, II , Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Dillon Grimm , Jad H. Khazem , Virginia Anne Williamson , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Ellen Choi , Robert D. Fram , Covington & Burling, LLP, San Francisco, CA, Morenike Fajana , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Nellie Linn King , West Palm Beach, FL, Cyrus S. Nasseri , Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Florida State Conference of Branches and Youth Units of the NAACP for Docket Number 22-11144.

P. Benjamin Duke , Shira M. Poliak , Covington & Burling, LLP, New York, NY, Benjamin Louis Baer Cavataro , Uttara Dukkipati , Michael Anthony Fletcher, II , Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Dillon Grimm , Jad H. Khazem , Virginia Anne Williamson , Miles Lindsey Galbraith , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Ellen Choi , Robert D. Fram , Nia Joyner , Covington & Burling, LLP, San Francisco, CA, Morenike Fajana , Romane De Paul , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Nellie Linn King , West Palm Beach, FL, Cyrus S. Nasseri , Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Disability Rights Florida for Docket Number 22-11144.

P. Benjamin Duke , Shira M. Poliak , Covington & Burling, LLP, New York, NY, Benjamin Louis Baer Cavataro , Uttara Dukkipati , Michael Anthony Fletcher, II , Elizabeth T. Fouhey , Dillon Grimm , Jad H. Khazem , Virginia Anne Williamson , Miles Lindsey Galbraith , Covington & Burling, LLP, Washington, DC, Ellen Choi , Robert D. Fram , Nia Joyner , Covington & Burling, LLP, San Francisco, CA, Morenike Fajana , Romane De Paul , NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., New York, NY, Cyrus S. Nasseri , Washington, DC, Amia Trigg , NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., Washington, DC, for Plaintiff-Appellee Common Cause for Docket Number 22-11144.

Mohammad O. Jazil , Michael Beato , Gary V. Perko , Attorney, Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak, PLLC, Tallahassee, FL, William David Chappell , Office of the Attorney General, Tallahassee, FL, John J. Cycon , Kenneth Clark Daines , Phillip Michael Gordon , Dallin B. Holt , Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC, Haymarket, VA, Ashley E. Davis , Bradley Robert McVay , Colleen E. O'Brien , Florida Department of State, Tallahassee, FL, for Defendant-Appellant Florida Secretary of State for Docket Numbers 22-11144, 22-11145.

Andre V. Bardos , James Timothy Moore, Jr. , GrayRobinson, PA, Tallahassee, FL, for Defendant-Appellant Lee County Supervisor of Elections for Docket Numbers 22-11144, 22-11145.

Tyler Richard Green , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Salt Lake City, UT, Cameron Thomas Norris , Daniel Joseph Shapiro , Steven Christopher Begakis , Consovoy McCarthy, PLLC, Arlington, VA, Benjamin J. Gibson , George N. Meros, Jr. , Daniel Nordby , Tara R. Price , Amber Stoner Nunnally , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Tallahassee, FL, Frank Zacherl , Shutts & Bowen, LLP, Miami, FL, for Defendants-Appellants Republican National Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee for Docket Numbers 22-11144, 22-11145.

John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Janine Marie Lopez , Elisabeth S. Theodore , Leslie Claire Bailey , Samuel Isaac Ferenc , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Jeffrey Andrew Miller , Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Brenda Wright , Demos, New York, NY, Aaron Stiefel , Daniel Ross Bernstein , Ryan D. Budhu , Andrew Richard Hirschel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, Andrew C. Case , Latino Justice PRLDEF, New York, NY, Francisca D. Fajana , National Center for Law and Economic Justice, New York, NY, Sabrina S. Khan , Sharion Trenell Scott , Advancement Project, Washington, DC, Esperanza Segarra , Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP, Fort Lauderdale, FL, for Plaintiffs-Appellees Florida Rising Together, Unidosus for Docket Number 22-11145.

John A. Freedman , Jeremy Karpatkin , Janine Marie Lopez , Elisabeth S. Theodore , Leslie Claire Bailey , Samuel Isaac Ferenc , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, Washington, DC, Emily Galindo , Latino Justice, Tampa, FL, Jeffrey Andrew Miller, Arnold & Porter, LLP, Palo Alto, CA, Kira Romero-Craft , Brenda Wright , Demos, New York, NY, Aaron Stiefel , Daniel Ross Bernstein , Ryan D. Budhu , Andrew Richard Hirschel , Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP, New York, NY, Andrew C. Case , Latino Justice PRLDEF, New York, NY, Francisca D. Fajana , National Center for Law and Economic Justice, New York, NY, Sharion Trenell Scott , Advancement Project, Washington, DC, Esperanza Segarra , Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP, Fort Lauderdale, FL, for Plaintiffs-Appellees Unidosus, Equal Ground Education Fund, Hispanic Federation, Poder Latinx, Haitian Neighborhood Center Sant La, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, for Docket Number 22-11145.

Before Newsom, Lagoa, and Brasher, Circuit Judges.


The district court here permanently enjoined three provisions of Florida law governing elections in that state. It also subjected Florida to a "preclearance" regime whereby the state—for the next decade— must seek and receive the district court's permission before it can enact or amend certain election laws. The state now asks...

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