New eligibility law tested in failed ballot challenge
A Florida judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit seeking to remove Republican Rep. Cory Mills from the primary ballot, rejecting arguments that the congressman failed to comply with state notarization requirements for his candidacy paperwork.
Judge J. Lee Marsh agreed with Mills and his legal team and dismissed the suit with prejudice, meaning the case is closed and cannot be refiled. The lawsuit tested a new Florida law that created a formal process to challenge someone’s eligibility to run for office.
Mills, whose seat represents Seminole and South Volusia Counties, was sued June 19 by primary challenger Michael Johnson. The suit alleged that Mills did not sign at least one of his documents and that the document was notarized in Washington, D.C., not in Florida, as Florida law requires.
Mills and his lawyers argued that the new law is about qualifications like age and residency, not the ballot, and that Florida election officials had accepted his candidacy.
“It’s clear on its face the Legislature has given the Secretary of State the ministerial duty of reviewing those oaths on the paperwork for qualification and submission,” Mills said. “The court can’t read behind that.”
“Ultimately the voters are entitled to choose as long as people meet the requirements of office,” Marsh said.
Mills is also under investigation by the House Committee on Ethics over allegations that he may have broken some laws, rules, or standards of conduct.