Florida’s population continues to rise, but the number of registered voters is shrinking—mostly among Democrats. In Leon County, some claim the decrease is the result of current leadership in the local Democratic Party. Others point out, the change coincides with new voter legislation that went into effect last summer.
Data from the Florida Division of Elections shows 14.5 million active registered voters on the state’s rolls at the end of 2022. Close to two years later, that number has dropped 8% to roughly 13.4 million as of May 31. All in all, a loss of 1.1 million voters. The number of registered voters has also dropped in Leon County where Democrats have lost their voter majority for the first time in decades. The number of registered Democrats now sits at 49% compared to Republicans with 28%, and 22% of voters registered as no-party-affiliated or minor-party voters.
Active Voter Registration in Leon County, FL
Democratic Disagreements
Some critics argue the decrease in local Democratic voters is the result of new direction within the Democratic Party. Former city commission candidate Bob Lotane, in a recent OpEd published by the Tallahassee Democrat, criticized the current rhetoric used by the Leon County Democratic Party. He believes local party chair Ryan Ray is partly responsible for the decline in local Democratic voters.
Ray was elected chair of the Leon County Democratic Party in December 2022, and since then the county has seen a 7% loss in voters. Democrats accounted for 75% of that loss.
Lotane told WFSU he thinks moderate Democrats are losing interest in the party.
“The party in Leon County, they give no reason for a small-business person, or a self-employed person who’s out there working hard to want to come in there. It’s all very progressive, socialist,” Lotane says.
Ray pushed back on that idea saying the leaders of the party are “trying to capture the imaginations and support and represent the values of and, frankly, advocate for, the interests of Democrats."
Exactly what caused the drop in Leon County’s registered Democrats isn’t a simple question. The decrease also coincides with a change in state law that caused officials to drop voters from their rolls.
A Change in Procedure
Florida Senate Bill 7050 took effect July 1, 2023. It mandates additional information on voter ID cards and signature-matching training for election workers. It also creates new requirements for post-election reports and puts new requirements in place for voter roll maintenance.
“7050 did make a significant change,” says Leon County Supervisor of Elections spokesman Alex Mosca. “It sort of flipped it on its head, where if we initiated that list maintenance activity because we had information that that person wasn’t residing in that address anymore we would send them a letter. If we didn’t hear anything back, now we could put them on the inactive rolls.”
Supervisors regularly reach out to voters to be sure their registration information is current. For example, if officials receive information from another government agency regarding a voter’s change in address, or signs of undeliverable mail, the voter will receive a notice. Now, a non-response from the voter earns them a spot on the inactive rolls. Once there, if the individual doesn’t vote for two election cycles, their registration could be removed entirely.
The Student Effect
Those removed from Leon County’s voter rolls under 7050 have been mostly Democrats. But Mosca says that’s likely because, historically, there have been more Democrats than Republicans registered in Leon County. And he points out there is also a large student population—which tends to skew toward Democrats and be fairly transient. Mosca says students who no longer live in the state of Florida, may have remained on voter rolls in the past and then when 7050 took effect were removed in one big chunk.
“A lot of folks come here for school, for education. So you have younger folks that are coming here for school, and then when they leave, their voter record may have been lingering on,” Mosca says.
Ray calls 7050 a political move and argues Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican controlled legislature have made voter registration more difficult, and in turn, reduced voter participation. But he says the Leon County Democrats remain focused on fighting their battles “issue by issue, and race by race.”
The deadline to register to vote for the election in November is October 7. More information is available at the Leon County Supervisor of Elections website.