TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A Florida Senate committee on Tuesday approved legislation that would allow the disqualification of political candidates who provide false information regarding their party affiliation on qualifying paperwork.

What it does: SB 62 establishes a formal enforcement mechanism to disqualify and remove candidates from the ballot if they provide false information regarding their political party affiliation or their status as a non-party-affiliated candidate.

Further details of the legislation include:

• Substantive requirements: The bill mandates that a candidate’s written statements regarding their party membership are not just facial requirements but substantive ones, meaning the information provided must be accurate.
• 365-day rule: Candidates seeking a party nomination must have been a registered member of that party for at least 365 consecutive days before the qualifying period begins.
• Non-affiliated requirements: Candidates running with no party affiliation must have been registered without any party affiliation for at least 365 consecutive days before to the start of the qualifying period.
• Civil cause of action: The legislation creates a process where a competing candidate or a political party in the same race can file a lawsuit in circuit court to challenge and potentially disqualify an opponent based on inaccurate affiliation claims.

The sponsors: The bill is being carried by Democratic Sen. Kristen Aston Arrington. An identical bill, HB 91, is...

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