Two Florida Democrats Sue To Keep Sanders Off Ballot

The Tallahassee Democrat reports:

Two Tallahassee men who don’t want to see independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders win the Democratic presidential nomination are suing to nullify votes he gets in Florida’s March 17 primary. Frank Bach, a retired letter carrier, and George Brown, a retired social worker, filed a lawsuit this week in Leon County Circuit Court asking a judge to disqualify Sanders from the ballot and block Florida from certifying his votes.

“The plaintiffs have the right to cast their March 17 Democratic presidential preference primary votes for those who are really Democrats, not independents, and are entitled to this court’s protection of their right to vote for a Democrat, with the results not diluted by Defendant Sanders’ unlawful participation as an independent interloping improperly in the (primary),” the complaint says.

Politico reports:



Karen Gievers, a former circuit court judge representing Frank Bach and George Brown, both Tallahassee Democrats, said Sanders should not be allowed on the Democratic ballot. Sanders caucuses with Democrats in the Senate but lists himself as an independent and has raised money in his Senate campaign account as an independent, according to the lawsuit.

“Florida is a closed primary state, yet here we have someone who is an independent on the Democratic ballot,” said Gievers. “You can’t be an independent and be a member of the party.” Florida law gives political parties leeway to decide which candidates can appear on a party’s primary ballot.