Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 7-21-17

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Federal Judge Bars State From Sending Additional Voter Data To Presidential Commission
ARTHENIA JOYNER ...Former State Senator
A federal judge has barred the State of Florida from send- ing voter data to Presidential Advisory Commission on Elec- tion Integrity beyond the bare minimum allowed under Florida law.
In a hearing Tuesday, in federal court in Miami in the lawsuit challenging the Com- mission’s effort to collect infor- mation on voters nationwide, U. S. District Judge Marcia Cooke ordered Florida Secre- tary of State Ken Detzner not to send the Commission any data that goes beyond what is publicly available under Florida law.
Responding to the court’s decision, ACLU of Florida Legal Director Nancy Abudu, who attended the hearing, stated:
“We are pleased that the court acted swiftly in ensuring that Florida’s chief election of- ficial maintains the privacy of voter information, which is protected from disclosure under state law.
“We look forward to argu- ing the merits of this case be- fore the court and exposing the real motivation behind this Commission: to substantiate President (Donald) Trump’s and Kris Kobach’s wild and unverified accusa-
MIKE SUAREZ ...Tampa City Councilman
tions of the existence of ram- pant voter fraud, despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary.”
While the Court ordered Detzner not to send addi- tional voter information, the Court declined to issue a re- straining order preventing the Commission’s scheduled meet- ing on Wednesday, which plaintiffs had challenged as op- erating outside the legal pa- rameters for a presidential commission.
The Court issued a written order Wednesday.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are: the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida, For- mer State Senator Arthenia Joyner, Tampa City Council- man Mike Suarez; Broward County voter Joshua A. Sim- mons; Miami-Dade County voter Brenda Shapiro; Miami-Dade County voter Luis Meurice; and the Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC).
For more information about the lawsuit visit: https://aclufl.org/2017/07/10 /coalition-of-voting-rights- leaders-and-florida-voters- sue-presidential-commission-o ver-request-for-voter-informa- tion/.
New President Of The Democratic Black Caucus Of Florida: Lydia Hudson
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Lydia Hudson is just se- veral weeks into her role as the newest president of the Demo- cratic Black Caucus of Florida, but she’s not new to politics.
The Tampa native won the top seat of one of the largest caucuses in the state Demo- cratic Party, but there’s been no time to bask in the accomplish- ment.
With Congressional and gu- bernatorial elections just a lit- tle over a year away, Hudson said she and her administra- tion have hit the ground run- ning to reach as many voters as possible and get them engaged in the political process.
Success will require the caucus to combine tried-and- true strategies like canvassing and town halls with more con- temporary plans of action, like social media campaigns.
(Donald) Trump’s upset in the last presidential election has taught Democrats to not take any voter for granted, Hudson said.
Tampa native, Lydia Hud- son was elected president of the Florida Democratic Black Cau- cus in May.
“Forty-five was the lesson to everyone that we can’t be complacent,” she said. “We have to knock on doors, talk to neighbors, and say as a com- munity we have to mobilize.”
Robin Lockett, president of the caucus’s Hillsborough County chapter, said she’s looking forward to Hudson building a strong grassroots or- ganization that will support candidates and causes that “won’t compromise” the Black
community.
“I’m ready for us to move,”
she said.
Consistently will be key to
the caucus’s success, Lockett said.
Creative and sincere out- reach to the Black community will be critical if Democrats want to be victorious come next November, Hudson said.
“I think we need to be dili- gent and consistent in our com- munity,” she said. “We need to make sure we understand and empower our community about who they are electing and why it’s important.”
Hudson, a Plant High School graduate, credits her mother with igniting the pas- sion she now carries for poli- tics.
“We were always encour- aged that as soon as we were el- igible, to register, to vote,” she said.
Hudson said her goal is to stir up that same fire in Florida’s estimated 2 million Black voters.
To do that, the Caucus will look to partner with organiza- tions, churches, and other enti- ties with which they share common interest.
“We want to make sure that those things we can come to- gether on, we’re coming to- gether on them,” she said.
The Caucus will make a special effort to rope in youth and ensure they understand the political process and the importance of voting long be- fore they cast a ballot, Hud- son said.
She’s tapping Caucus Vice President, Russell Drake to lead that campaign.
Drake, an engineer and fa- miliar face on Orlando’s politi- cal scene, said he’s looking forward to working with Hud- son.
“I think Lydia has the abil- ity to lead and she also knows when to let other people drive,” he said. “She knows how to shift to the passenger’s seat and let someone else accelerate.”
But perhaps most impor- tant is to constantly stress to African Americans that their participation in the political system is necessary in local elections as well as presiden- tial, Hudson said.
Many are unaware that every part of their lives – the water they drink, the cars they drive, the homes they live in – are affected by the process, she said.
“When people say they’re not political, I say ‘maybe you’re not, but your life is’,” she said.
PAGE 4-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, JULY 21, 2017