On The Front Lines
The Rutherford Institute Urges U.S. Supreme Court to Hear First Amendment Case Involving Right to Political Expression at the Polls
WASHINGTON, DC -- The Rutherford Institute, in conjunction with several other organizations equally committed to protecting civil liberties, particularly the First Amendment freedoms of speech and petition, has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Citizens for Police Accountability Political Committee v. Browning, which challenges a Florida law that restricts political expression based upon its content. Specifically, the statute allows exit pollsters to talk to voters as they are exiting the polls but does not give equal access to individuals intent on circulating petitions. The joint brief was filed by the following organizations: The Rutherford Institute; The Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project (part of the School of Journalism at the University of Florida); National Voter Outreach; The Initiative & Referendum Institute; Citizens in Charge Foundation; and the Brechner Center for Freedom of Information.
A copy of the amicus brief is available here.
"This case strikes at the very heart of political speech, democracy, the political process and the First Amendment rights of speech and petition," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute. "For these reasons, it is our hope that the Supreme Court will agree to hear the case and affirm that the right to petition the government should not be lightly treaded upon by the government."
At issue in Citizens for Police Accountability Political Committee v. Browning is a Florida statute that has faced multiple constitutional challenges since it was enacted in 1977. The statute as written prohibited all forms of solicitation within 100 feet of polling places while the polls are open. This prohibition was not only directed at campaign workers and street vendors but prohibited exit poll workers and petition gatherers from coming within the 100-foot "No Approach Zone." Following successful challenges by media organizations and petition advocates, the statute was modified in 1989 to allow exit polling and petition gathering within the "No Approach Zone." In 2005, however, the Florida legislature reversed course and enacted language prohibiting both exit polling and petition circulating. In 2006, media organizations successfully challenged the law's application to exit polling. In August 2008, Citizens for Police Accountability Political Committee (CPAPC) and Florida State Conference of the NAACP filed suit in district court, arguing that the Florida statute violated their First Amendment right to engage in political speech at polling places. In asking the Supreme Court to hear the case, The Rutherford Institute notes that the case speaks to "the disparate treatment of the proverbial 'little person' as he or she seeks to facilitate change through the collection of the signatures of registered voters in an economic and efficient manner at polling places."
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