Deborah Foote, deborah.foote@sierraclub.org
JACKSONVILLE -- Earlier today, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed SB 90 into law, a Jim Crow-style voter suppression bill that will make it more difficult for Floridians to vote. Florida is the latest state to enact a voter suppression bill since the 2020 election. In total, 47 Republican legislatures have introduced more than 350 Jim Crow-inspired bills to suppress votes.
The US Senate will soon take up the For the People Act, which will create nationwide automatic and same day voter registration, strengthen anti-corruption laws to curb the influence of corporate polluters, put an end to partisan gerrymandering, restore voting rights for 1.7 million formerly incarcerated people, and more.
In response, the Sierra Club’s Acting Florida Chapter Director Deborah Foote issued the following statement:
“Governor DeSantis and the Florida Republican Party are spewing a lot of lies when it comes to this bill, but the fact of the matter is that SB 90 is a voter suppression tactic. Florida isn’t the first state to employ this effort, they’re just the latest in a long list of states to enact legislation that seeks to disenfranchise people of color, disabled people, young people, and the elderly.
“Florida is still facing a once-in-a-generation pandemic, dismal vaccination rates, and a crushing economic downturn, yet Governor DeSantis and his cronies are more focused on taking away Floridians’ right to vote. The passage of voter suppression bills is a deliberate attempt to grab power and erode our democracy. Enough is enough. We call on the Senate to pass the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act to help restore voting rights for all Americans.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.