On Friday, a federal judge temporarily blocked Florida’s state law that imposed significant restrictions on people with  felony convictions who want to register to vote.

The preliminary injunction that the judge granted was requested by the ACLU and other organizations and rebuked Gov. DeSantis and the Republican-controlled legislature.

The decision only applies to the plaintiffs and means that the legal battle will churn in the months ahead of the 2020 election. But it does have a major impact on local elections happening next month across Florida.

In a statement on the decision, Charlotte County Democratic Executive Committee Vice Chair Teresa Jenkins said:

“I am confident that the court will rule that Florida cannot deny restoration of a former felon’s right to vote based solely on their financial resources. We are one step closer to that decision.”

Judge rules Florida can’t block felons from voting, even if they have unpaid fines

The right to vote for 1.4 million felons in Florida got a boost Friday when a federal judge ruled that the state can’t prevent felons from voting, even if they can’t afford to pay court-ordered fines and fees.

(Read more in WashingtonPost.com)