Florida
A free, public tool identifying and examining the impact of election deniers serving in local offices working on election administration. Learn more about our election threat criteria here.
14 public officials in Florida have credibly participated in election denial activities.
Just in the state house, they represent 7% of the state’s constituents.
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8
Florida House of RepresentativesElection deniers in the State House risk enacting laws that can undermine fair voting processes and democratic integrity.
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5
Florida State SenatorsElection deniers as senators may pass biased laws and endorse appointees that erode electoral integrity and democratic principles.
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1
Florida Secretary of StateAn election denier as the secretary of state may improperly manage election results and undermine the integrity of the voting process.
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In 2020, Former President Donald Trump won Florida by 371,686 votes.
10,965,776 voters cast ballots in Florida for President.
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In 2022, Governor Ron Desantis won Florida by 1,508,314 votes.
7,719,252 voters cast ballots in Florida for Governor.
Florida voter turnout by county
Florida voter turnout by county
2 pieces of election threat legislation
Florida election threats have introduced legislation that would make it difficult to vote and change election procedures. Here are 2 bills you should know about:
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SB 7050
This enacted bill makes restrictive changes to election and voting procedures like changing voter registration requirements, requesting mail ballots and voter list processes.
Supported by 10 Election Threats
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SB 90
This bill makes restrictive changes to voting, in-person voting and election administration.
Supported by 7 Election Threats
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Election Threats
86% are in favor of anti-democratic legislation
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Cord Byrd
Secretary of State | Florida
Evidence of Election Denialism
Byrd has refused to say that President Biden won the election when asked. Publicly endorsed via Facebook a Texas lawsuit that sought to block the 2020 election certification in four states.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of and co-sponsored SB 90 which restricts mail in voting by requiring voters to provide their driver’s license ID or the last four digits of their social security number.
Co-sponsored SB 524 which increases the penalty for returning more than two mail-in ballots from a misdemeanor to a third degree felony and requests the Florida Department of State to tighten ID requirements for mail-in ballots.
Selected Sources
Byrd was appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis to replace Republican Laurel Lee, who resigned in May 2022.
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Alina Garcia
State Representative | District 115
Evidence of Election Denialism
Garcia denied the outcome of the 2020 election in a public Facebook post indicating that President Biden did not win the election. Claimed on Facebook in the 2020 election that multiple states reported higher voter turnout numbers than registered voters insinuating fraud.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Candidacy
Running for State House representing Florida’s 115th District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
In a two-way race in 2022, Garcia won with 40,393 votes, or 58.5% of the votes. She won 11,697 more votes than her Democratic opponent.
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Philip Wayne Griffits, Jr.
State Representative | District 6
Evidence of Election Denialism
In a Republican candidate debate, when asked about the integrity of the 2020 election, Griffitts responded with, “if anything we saw on the news is relatively true then there was absolutely fraud committed around the country” and “I think in certain states there was election fraud.”
Griffitts previously served as a board member of the Bay County Election Canvassing Board. He signed a voting system post-election audit report verifying the county’s votes for the 2020 presidential election.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Candidacy
Running for State House representing Florida’s 6th District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
The 2022 general election for District 6 was canceled and Griffitts was elected as a result. In the Republican primary Griffitts won with 66.5% of the votes.
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Joe Gruters
State Senator | District 22
Evidence of Election Denialism
Gruters publicly denied on Facebook the outcome of the 2020 election alleging that the Florida GOP sent volunteers to Georgia to investigate election fraud. He also supported Trump’s election litigation in battleground states and claimed that the outcome of the election in these states remained in doubt.
On January 2, 2021, Gruters encouraged, via public Facebook post, for people to attend the January 6th, “Stop the Steal Rally,” in Washington D.C.
On December 1, 2021, Gruters claimed that “there’s serious questions that exist about the 2020 race.”
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Voted in favor of SB 90 which restricts mail in voting by requiring voters to provide their driver’s license ID or the last four digits of their social security number.
Sponsored SB 1602 which would require additional identification for voter registration applicants.
Voted in favor of SB 524 which increases the penalty for returning more than two mail-in ballots from a misdemeanor to a third degree felony and requests the Florida Department of State to tighten ID requirements for mail-in ballots.
Candidacy
Gruters assumed office on November 8, 2022 and his current term ends November 3, 2026.Selected Sources
The 2022 general election for District 22 was canceled and Gruters was re-elected as a result.
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Ed Hooper
State Senator | District 21
Evidence of Election Denialism
In 2021, Hooper suggested that a forensic audit of elections would be needed based on concerns from constituents.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Voted in favor of SB 90 which restricts mail in voting by requiring voters to provide their driver’s license ID or the last four digits of their social security number.
Sponsored SB 1602 which would require additional identification for voter registration applicants.
Voted in favor of SB 524 which increases the penalty for returning more than two mail-in ballots from a misdemeanor to a third degree felony and requests the Florida Department of State to tighten ID requirements for mail-in ballots.
Candidacy
Running for State Senate representing Florida’s 21st District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
In a two-way race in 2022, Hooper won with 148,673 votes, or 64.8% of the votes. He won 67,745 more votes than his Democratic opponent.
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Blaise Ingoglia
State Senator | District 11
Evidence of Election Denialism
Ingoglia also shared on Facebook a meme alleging that President Biden cheated in the 2020 election.
In an interview with Newsmax, Ingoglia claimed that ballot boxes funded by third parties went mainly to democratic strongholds in Florida during the 2020 election and amounted to “engineering an election.”
Potential Impact
Sponsored SB 1752 which would narrow the eligibility for mail-in ballots.
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Voted in favor of SB 90 which restricts mail in voting by requiring voters to provide their driver’s license ID or the last four digits of their social security number.
Sponsored SB 1602 which would require additional identification for voter registration applicants.
Voted in favor of SB 524 which increases the penalty for returning more than two mail-in ballots from a misdemeanor to a third degree felony and requests the Florida Department of State to tighten ID requirements for mail-in ballots.
Co-drafted HB 7041 which would impose new voting restrictions, including a prohibition on assistance to voters at voting locations, additional requirements for mail-in ballots, and restrictions on ballot boxes.
Candidacy
Running for State Senate representing Florida’s 11th District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
In a two-way race in 2022, Ingoglia won with 192,167 votes, or 75% of the votes. He won 128,048 more votes than his Democratic opponent.
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Jonathan Martin
State Senator | District 33
Evidence of Election Denialism
Publicly posted via Facebook his objection to certifying the 2020 presidential election. .
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Candidacy
Running for State Senate representing Florida’s 33rd District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
Jonathan Martin ran as the only party-affiliated candidate in the 2022 general election for District 33 and won with 149,922 votes or 98.9% of total votes.
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Debbie Mayfield
State Senator | District 19
Evidence of Election Denialism
Publicly supported, via X, the Florida Attorney General for joining a 2020 lawsuit, filed by Texas, which sought to block the election results in four swing states won by President Biden.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Voted in favor of SB 524 which increases the penalty for returning more than two mail-in ballots from a misdemeanor to a third degree felony and requests the Florida Department of State to tighten ID requirements for mail-in ballots.
Voted in favor of SB 90 which restricts mail in voting by requiring voters to provide their driver’s license ID or the last four digits of their social security number.
Candidacy
It is unlikely that Debbie Mayfield will run for State Senate in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
The 2022 general election for District 19 was canceled and Mayfield was elected as a result.
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Kiyan Michael
State Representative | District 16
Evidence of Election Denialism
Michael publicly via Facebook posts denied the validity of the 2020 presidential election multiple times stating that fraud was witnessed, dead people prefer to vote by mail, there were more mail-in-ballots returned than sent out in Pennsylvania, and to pray for the exposure of voter fraud.
Also supported the attempt of “fraudit” by publicly posting that the 2020 election results should be audited.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Candidacy
Running for State House representing Florida’s 16th District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
Kiyan Michael ran as the only party-affiliated candidate in the 2022 general election for District 16 and won with 52,145 votes or 99.6% of total votes.
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Tobin Rogers "Toby" Overdorf
State Representative | District 85
Evidence of Election Denialism
Overdorf denied the validity of the 2020 election by publicly tweeted unfounded allegations that there was over 100% voter turnout, and thousands of votes were found for a single candidate. He also denied the validity of the 2022 election by publicly tweeting that Florida requires all votes to be counted within election night, alluding that if ballot counting progresses past election night foul play could occur.
Potential Impact
Voted in favor of SB 7050 which limits the power of third-party voter registration organizations, increases restrictions on mail in voting, and increases the risk of a voter’s registration being canceled. SB 7050 also requires signature matching training for election supervisors as well as requiring supervisors to submit reconciliation reports that analyze voter history and flag first time voters.
Voted in favor of SB 90 which restricts mail in voting by requiring voters to provide their driver’s license ID or the last four digits of their social security number.
Candidacy
Running for State House representing Florida’s 85th District in the 2024 election.Selected Sources
In a two-way race in 2022, Overdorf won with 44,581 votes, or 60.9% of the votes. He won 15,904 more votes than his Democratic opponent.