Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed legislation that would have allowed high school students to earn scholarships by volunteering at polling locations — and he’s citing the support of a progressive civil rights organization loathed by conservatives as a reason for rejecting it.
Debate about the bill (HB 461) during the committee process was devoid of any controversy, and it passed unanimously in both the House (108-0) and the Senate (37-0). The House version was sponsored by Republicans Kiyan Michael and Susan Valdés, of Jacksonville and Tampa, respectively, and in the Senate by Jacksonville Republican Clay Yarborough.
Another Republican, Duval County Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland, was a key figure pushing for the measure. Speaking during a Senate committee meeting in January, he said he conceived of the idea when helping his grandson look over options for him to fulfill community service hours, but none involved civic matters.
“Why can’t they learn about elections?” Holland said. “And why can’t we find something that gets young people involved in elections and inspires them maybe to be a poll-worker in the future?”
Among the organizations supporting the measure were the League of Women Voters of Florida, Common Cause, and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). It was public support from that group that the governor noted in his veto message, saying that could potentially lead to a violation of a state law that bans any specific polling location from having poll workers from only one political party.
“While the House and Senate sponsors had a noble intent in filing the bill, the application of the bill may result in an avenue for polls to be staffed with volunteers that may not be subject to Florida’s prohibition on single party registered poll workers for general elections,” DeSantis wrote. “Given the bill received support in committee by representatives of the Southern Poverty Law Center, this may indeed be the consequence of the legislation.”
Jonathan Webber, Florida policy director for the SPLC, called the veto “unfortunate” in a statement to the Phoenix.
“The SPLC is a nonpartisan nonprofit that supports good policies, which would benefit all Floridians, no matter where they come from. In this case, it was a Republican-sponsored bill that passed with bipartisan unanimous support that would allow high school students to learn about how our elections work and earn valuable first-hand experience and service hours,” he said.
“It’s unfortunate the Governor would choose to veto this legislation over helping young Floridians and our tireless election administrators, who deserve any and all support to ensure an efficient voting process during the upcoming midterm elections.”
After this story was published, Jessica L0we-Minor, the president of the League of Women Voters of Florida, also weighed in.
“The League of Women Voters of Florida was surprised that the Governor vetoed House Bill 461, particularly given that the bill received strong bipartisan support within the Legislature. From our perspective, the bill created a valuable opportunity for young Americans to learn about the electoral process by volunteering at the polls. We appreciate the bill sponsors’ work to introduce the bill this year and hope it will be re-visited during the 2027 Session.”
Republicans have criticized the Southern Poverty Law Center for years, alleging it has unfairly labelled conservative organizations as extremist. Those groups include Moms for Liberty, Charlie Kirk’s Turning Point USA, and the Center for Immigration Studies.
Members of those groups and other conservatives cheered after President Trump’s Justice Department announced in April that a federal grand jury in Alabama had indicted the SPLC on charges of fraud and money laundering. The indictment alleges a paid informant program used by the organization to gather intelligence on racist and far-right groups was tantamount to aid for those groups.
The SPLC is defending itself in federal court, asserting that acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche made false statements during the press conference discussing the indictment and that it deserves to know “whether the same or similar false statements were made in secret to the grand jury,”
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier followed up in early May with a press release declaring that his office was conducting its own civil investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center “for alleged deceptive and unfair practices related to charitable solicitations and fundraising.”
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.This article appears in June 25 – July 01, 2026.
