A flicker of light on the dark landscape of voter suppression laws came this past week in the form of a ruling from a federal judge in Florida that struck down several provisions of a 2021 law that would have made it harder for some to vote.

The ruling is one of the first to weigh in on the wave of voter suppression state laws that were passed following the 2020 election, despite there being no evidence that the election was fraudulent.  

In particular, the federal judge in Florida ruled that limits on drop boxes, prohibiting groups from passing out food and water to voters waiting in line, and new requirements on groups helping to register eligible voters were unconstitutional and discriminated against minorities. And he ruled that the state must get court approval for the next 10 years before it enacts further changes in the three areas.

Both Kansas and Missouri state legislatures have passed voter suppression laws. In Kansas, a federal court allowed a lawsuit against one of the laws that restrict out-of-state organizations from providing mail-in ballots to proceed and blocked its enforcement while the case moves forward.

To read the full ruling from Florida, click here.

100YearsoftheVote.org will continue to monitor voting rights legislation and court rulings closely as the country moves toward midterm elections.