Chairman Evan Power of the Republican Party of Florida issued the following statement in response to lawsuits filed by liberal dark money groups against Florida’s newly signed election integrity measure, HB 1205:

“It’s no surprise that well-funded, left-wing dark money groups-many backed by anonymous donors and based outside of Florida-are resorting to lawsuits in a desperate attempt to overturn HB 1205,” said Chairman Power. “These shady organizations masquerade as grassroots activists but are part of a coordinated national effort to mislead voters, bypass the legislative process, and manipulate our state constitution for political gain.”

On May 3, 2025, Governor Ron DeSantis signed HB 1205, a bill passed by the Republican-led legislature that enacts strong, common-sense safeguards to restore integrity to Florida’s broken petition process. Prompted by investigations from the Secretary of State and the Office of Election Crimes and Security, these reforms respond to disturbing findings-including forged signatures, stolen personal information, and petitions signed in the names of deceased individuals.

HB 1205 ensures that:

• Only U.S. citizens may collect petition signatures
• Petition gatherers must be Florida residents and pass a background check
• Petitions must be returned in a timely manner to prevent fraud and abuse

“This shady, profit-driven petition industry has operated in the shadows for too long-weakening confidence in our constitutional amendment process,” Power continued. “HB 1205 puts a stop to that and ensures that future ballot initiatives are legitimate, transparent, and secure.”

“These lawsuits are nothing more than political actions from groups that can’t win in the legislature, so they’re trying to buy their way onto the ballot,” said Power. “Florida’s Constitution is not for sale.”

“We won’t be intimidated by baseless legal challenges. We will stand strong, defend our Constitution, and protect the integrity of our elections. We will not back down. We will fight.”