Broward official played politics

Elections Supervisor Peter Antonacci risked office’s credibility

Peter Antonacci, Broward County’s appointed elections supervisor, injected politics into a major election law case and thus risked the credibility of his office.

The American Civil Liberties Union and others are challenging the Florida law that requires ex-felons to pay all fines and restitution before regaining their right to vote. The plaintiffs contend the law undermines Amendment 4, which voters approved last year to automatically restore voting rights to most ex-felons. Before it passed, thenGov. Rick Scott and his Cabinet colleagues had made people wait a minimum of five years, then routinely rejected their requests.

Antonacci and nine other supervisors are defendants in the federal lawsuit. The plaintiffs filed it in Gainesville, likely hoping that U.S. District Judge Mark Walker would hear it. Eighteen months ago, Walker ruled — correctly — that Scott’s process was unconstitutional. His ruling irked Republicans.

Antonacci hired Tallahassee attorney George Meros to represent him. Meros works with the judge’s wife at Holland & Knight. Because of that connection,

Walker recused himself from the case. He called Antonacci’s hiring selection “deeply troubling.”

In a statement, Antonacci denied any ulterior motive. He cited a relationship with Meros that dates to 1997. He noted Meros’ “expertise in this area of law.” The decision came down to “professional competence.”

We will stipulate that Meros is an expert in election law. We still don’t agree with the choice.

All of Meros’ significant election work has been for Republicans. He served on the legal team that supported George W. Bush in the 2000 recount. He has represented the GOP in redistricting battles. And his selection in this case sidelined the judge that Republicans wanted gone.

For a county where 72% of voters approved Amendment 4, we don’t see this choice as a simple matter of “competence.” We see it as more of the same from Antonacci and Scott.

Previously, Antonacci did Scott’s bidding by running off the director of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. That action violated the Sunshine Law. Antonacci helped enable it.

Then Scott ran off the executive director of the South Florida Water Management District for suggesting more money was needed to shore up its aging floodcontrol system. Though Antonacci had no relevant experience, Scott sent him to run the district. During his tenure, the agency opposed the southern reservoir that scientists consider critical to keeping toxic algae out of waterways and to helping the Everglades. Conservation groups generally describe Antonacci’s tenure as a failure.

Scott overreached one final time last December by naming Antonacci to run Broward’s election office. The incompetent Brenda Snipes already had announced her resignation after botching the general election, her most recent debacle. She had timed her departure, however, so that the next governor could choose her replacement.

Instead, Scott suspended Snipes, which allowed him to choose her replacement. He picked Antonacci – a white, male Republican in Tallahassee – to take over for an African American, female Democrat in the state’s most heavily Democratic county.

We don’t presume that elections supervisors will favor their party. In fact, most are scrupulous about being nonpartisan. But as his selection indicates, Antonacci is not your usual supervisor.

And because he is not running for election next year, he is not accountable to voters for how he handles a pivotal presidential election in a pivotal county in a pivotal state.

In an interview with the Sun Sentinel Editorial Board this week, Antonacci said he’s sweating the details of his office because a minor slip-up could cascade into an election night meltdown. He’s buying four more tabulation machines to handle the crush of mail-in ballots received on Election Day. He’s addressing the recruitment and retention of poll workers and polling places. He’s promising a maximum number of Early Voting days and hours. Among Florida’s largest counties, he wants Broward to place first, not last, in reporting accurate election results.

But Antonacci didn’t push the Legislature for more time to certify election results — something Florida’s largest counties said they needed after the 2018 recount debacle. He says he didn’t get involved because he didn’t want to be a distraction. But given his connections, he might have helped ensure Broward has the time it needs to count all votes.

And if he’s avoiding politics, why did he make such a political choice in the Amendment 4 lawsuit?

To oversee elections in a Democraticleaning county of nearly 2 million people, Rick Scott decided a Tallahassee Republican was the best choice.

And to defend Republican-backed restrictions on felon voting rights, that Scott loyalist picked a Tallahassee Republican whose selection forced a progressive judge off the case.

Coincidence? We think not.

Confidence in Antonacci? Shaken, again.

SOUTH FLORIDA SUN SENTINEL Peter Antonacci has again proved to be a wily GOP strategist, no matter his appointment to run the elections office in one of Florida’s largest Democratic counties.