Florida government finds fault with abortion ballot measure over ads and petitions

Florida’s government is finding fault on multiple fronts with an abortion rights ballot measure that Gov. Ron DeSantis opposes.

This month, the state health department has been telling television stations they could be subject to criminal charges if they continue airing one ad from Floridians Protecting Freedom that the government says is untrue and creates a “sanitary nuisance.” The ad has continued to run anyway.

Separately, on Friday, the Office of Election Crimes and Security issued a report claiming a “large number of forged signatures or fraudulent petitions” were submitted to get the question on the ballot. The state also announced a $328,000 fine against the ballot-measure group.

The campaign director for the group says that the campaign has been “above board” and that the state government is acting improperly to try to defeat the amendment.