Some voters in Escambia County had their polling place shift on the day of a high-profile Special Election. Now, Florida Democrats are alleging potential voter suppression by Republican leaders there.

Democratic congressional candidate Gay Valimont and Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried planned to hold a 1 p.m. press conference to decry the potential confusion.

“Jimmy Patronis and his surrogates are attempting to block voters because he failed to show respect for the people of this district and neglected to earn their trust or ask for their vote,” Valimont said.

Voters who normally cast ballots at Macedonia Baptist Church in Pensacola, Precinct 98 in Escambia County, found no way to vote there Tuesday. Instead, those voters had to drive two miles to St. John’s Divine Missionary Baptist Church, which isn’t listed as a voting location at all on the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections website.

“Voter suppression undermines the very foundation of our democracy. Every eligible voter deserves equal access to the ballot box, and I am committed to fighting for that fundamental right,” Gay said. “The voters of Escambia County Precinct 98 deserve nothing less.”

Escambia County Supervisor of Elections Robert Bender said he has communicated with the Valimont location about the move in voting location for that precinct for weeks. He also said all voters in the precinct were notified of the change by mail with a specific notice and as part of sample ballots. For Republican voters eligible to vote in a January Primary, they were told of the precint move before that election, when the same alternative location was used. In addition to mail, he said a full page ad was published in the Pensacola News-Journal advising precinct locations and bolding this and four other precincts because the locations were different from in November.

Bender said the Macedonia Baptist Church let elections officials know after the November election that the location would no longer be available for use for voting. While a list of all precincts on the county website still lists the church as the Precinct voting location, a notice on the same website notes some locations may have changed. And Bender said if a voter put in their own address or personal information to find a proper voting location, the website would have identified the new address.

“That was within two weeks of general election,” he said. “We did try and find other locations in the precinct, but found one in an adjoining precinct.”

Escambia County leans heavily Republican. President Donald Trump won the countywide vote there in November with almost 59% of the vote to Democrat Kamala Harris’ under 40%. But Precinct 98 is the biggest Democratic precinct in the county. Harris won the precinct in November with more than 76% of the vote to Trump’s 22%.

Bender said about 1,900 Democrats are registered in the precinct, compared to 512 Republicans and 521 other voters.

The confusion came on Tuesday, the same day Valimont faces Republican Jimmy Patronis in a Special Election to replace former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz.

Patronis, Florida’s former Chief Financial Officer, is the heavy favorite to win the district, which covers four counties. But Valimont has drawn significant attention to the race after raising $6.5 million for the Special Election, compared to Patronis’ $2 million.

As of noon, nearly 4,900 Republicans in Escambia County had voted in the Special Election, compared to nearly 2,800 Democrats.

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Standing alongside her husband, First Lady Casey DeSantis defended her Hope Florida initiative as lawmakers will debate the program’s fate later Tuesday.

“When somebody is in need of help, do you get a check for government assistance, and that’s where the story ends? Or can we help you on a pathway to economic self-sufficiency? Can we provide you with a lifeline of hope at the end of the day?” Casey DeSantis said at a press conference in Tallahassee.

She spoke less than three hours before the Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee is scheduled to debate a bill related to Hope Florida.

SB 1144, by Sen. Danny Burgess, codifies the Office of Hope Florida within the Governor’s Office.

The bill comes amid speculation about whether Casey DeSantis is running to replace her term-limited husband. Gov. Ron DeSantis is also feuding with Republican legislative leaders who have pushed back on his initiatives since this year’s Special Session on immigration reform.

The First Lady started Hope Florida in 2021 as to serve as “a connection point for community collaboration between the public and private sector, faith-based communities, and nonprofits,” the group’s website said.

The Miami Herald recently reported that “details surrounding its performance, personnel and separate fundraising arm have been vague.”

Both Ron DeSantis and Casey DeSantis were defiant in support of Hope Florida Tuesday.

“The possibilities are not even limited to other states copying,” the Governor said. “Both the First Lady and I have briefed both the President and Elon Musk about this as a way to produce better outcomes, but you could save a lot of money too when you’re looking at how some of these federal programs operate.”

Casey DeSantis said Hope Florida taps into church and faith groups.

“We have 16.5 million people of faith across this state, 20,000 institutions,” she said. “You think if they knew that mom was struggling and needed some help, how cool would it be if they could show up at her front doorstep with a plate of lasagna to say, ‘I heard you were going through some tough times. We got you.’ We can do that in the state of Florida.”

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A bill that would give innocent parents a much-needed way to disprove false child abuse claims is heading to the Senate floor after clearing its last committee hurdle.

Members of the Senate Rules Committee voted unanimously for SB 304, which among other things would enable parents whose children are removed from their custody on suspicion of physical abuse to request additional medical examinations — at their expense — in certain cases.

The bill is called “Patterson’s Law” after Michael and Tasha Patterson and their twin sons, whom the Department of Children and Families (DCF) took custody of in 2022 after broken bones the boys suffered raised alarms during an emergency room visit.

The couple took their matter to court, citing medical evidence showing that like their mother, the boys — who have still not been returned — have a rare genetic disorder called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome that causes fragile bones and easy bruising.

The Pattersons’ story is not an isolated incident. One Facebook group for families “who have been impacted by the medical misdiagnosis of child abuse” called Parents Behind The Pinwheels has 9,200 likes and 16,000 followers.

“The goal of this legislation is to protect vulnerable children, give parents a right to a qualified medical opinion for their children and reunify families who would otherwise be wrongfully separated,” said Broward County Democratic Sen. Barbara Sharief, a doctor of nursing practice who presented the bill.

Sharief said various preexisting genetic conditions like Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, rickets, osteogenesis imperfecta and vitamin D deficiency can lead to signs of bodily harm that aren’t due to physical abuse, but the state’s process for determining whether that’s the case is faulty, and it’s hurting families.

Today, she said, when there is a report of physical abuse, DCF conducts a visit and if visible bodily harm is observed, the child is immediately removed from the parent for their safety. A 24-hour shelter follows, after which a temporary protective supervision process begins, lasting up to 21 days until a determination is made.

But genetic testing critical to identifying preexisting conditions can take upward of six months to process, and in many cases siblings must also undergo testing that further delays reunification.

“The issue is that child protective investigators who may not be familiar with these diseases often make initial determinations of abuse based solely on physical findings — injuries such as broken ribs, bowed limbs (and) dislocated joints, which are characteristic of certain medical conditions — (that) can be misdiagnosed as a sign of physical abuse,” Sharief said.

“This bill will ask that a qualified physician or medical professional gives an opinion to determine whether (the child’s injuries are) consistent with an underlying medical condition or with child abuse. Currently, parents do not have enough time to identify or submit a second opinion (from a qualified physician or medical professional to challenge an abuse determination, (and) families are wrongfully separated.”

SB 304 and its House analog (HB 511) aim to fix that. It would give DCF more time to forward allegations of criminal conduct to a law enforcement agency if a parent alleges the existence of certain preexisting medical conditions or has requested an examination.

The bill, effective July 1, would require child protective investigators to remind parents at the beginning of an investigation that they have a duty to report their child’s preexisting conditions and provide supporting records in a timely manner. It would also mandate that child protective teams consult with a licensed physician or advanced practice registered nurse with relevant experience in such cases.

Boynton Beach Democratic Sen. Lori Berman commended Sharief for filing SB 304 and noted that numerous parents who had been affected by the issue had spoken in favor of the legislation at the bill’s prior committee stop.

“It was so emotional and moving and gut-wrenching because a lot of them have still not even been reunited with their children,” said Berman, who in 2023 passed Greyson’s Law to better safeguard children at risk of parental harm. “This is a really necessary bill.”

The Florida Smart Justice Alliance and Florida Justice Association signaled support for SB 304, which pends scheduling for Senate floor consideration.

HB 511, sponsored by Weston Democratic Rep. Robin Bartleman and Shalimar Republican Rep. Patt Maney awaits a hearing before the second of two committees to which it was referred.

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