PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Florida is joining other GOP-led states like Missouri and West Virginia and ending its membership with the electronic registration information center, also known as ERIC.
Secretary of State Cord Byrd said the decision was made because of data privacy and “blatant partisanship.” But supporters of the ERIC are speaking out against the decision.
“It’s really just straight bipartisan/non-partisan election integrity,” said Brad Ashwell, Florida director of All Voting is Local.
Gov. Ron Desantis supported ERIC in 2019 when he announced that Florida would join as a member. He said it would ensure that the state has cleaner and more accurate voter registration rolls.
While working on a story about the state ending his membership with ERIC, ABC Action News found out about a Pinellas County man who was arrested Monday, March 6. His name is Philip French. According to the Pinellas Co. supervisor of elections, Julie Marcus, French voted twice in 2020.
“It is important for us to make sure that we provide any evidence of potential voter fraud to our state attorney for possible persecution,” Marcus said.
According to the arrest report, French voted in Florida and in Virginia in 2020. Marcus said he was not the only one. There are two other Pinellas County residents being investigated.
“We received this information because of Florida’s relationship with ERIC,” she said.
Ashwell said that’s proof positive that ERIC works and is needed in the state. Secretary Byrd said, in a press release, the decision is to secure data and eliminate what some state leaders consider partisan tendencies, writing, “Withdrawing from ERIC will ensure the data privacy of Florida voters is protected.”
“It’s baffling that they would remove the state from it,” said Ashwell.
