State lawyer demands partisan races from Polk County elections chief

The state elections authority has threatened legal action against Polk County Supervisor of Elections Lori Edwards if she refuses to hold partisan races for some local seats, including her own.

If Edwards keeps some races nonpartisan, the Florida Department of State “will be forced to bring an action to enforce the performance of your duties in accordance with the Florida Election Code,” wrote Joseph Van de Bogart, general counsel at the agency.

Edwards, a former Democratic state House member, has labeled two constitutional-office races nonpartisan on the county elections website: the Supervisor of Elections race between herself and Republican State Rep. Melony Bell and the Property Appraiser race between Polk County Commissioner Neil Combee and Gow Fields.

Van de Bogart’s letter says the non-partisan classification was made despite Bell’s intention “to seek a party’s nomination.” Bell, a Republican, is running against Edwards in a county where Republican Governor Ron DeSantis fetched nearly two-thirds of all votes last year.

The demand letter from the Department of State follows a Florida Politics story detailing Combee’s push to make certain races partisan in his county, including the Property Appraiser seat for which he is running.

Combee has cited precedent from the Florida Supreme Court to support his position. The case, Orange County v. Singh, held that the Florida Election Code requires partisan races and therefore it preempted a provision in Orange County’s charter stating otherwise.

Edwards, meanwhile, relies on a provision in the Polk County charter that requires all constitutional-officer elections to be nonpartisan. Such offices include the Property Appraiser position and the Supervisor of Elections seat, along with other positions including Clerk of Courts, Sheriff, and Tax Collector.

“As long as I have a charter, I’m going to follow the charter,” Edwards told Florida Politics last month. “I’m going to follow the laws and follow the charter whatever the situation.” Florida Politics has again reached out to Edwards for comment following the demand letter.

In his letter to Edwards, Van de Bogart recognized that there is an apparent conflict between the Polk charter and the state law. But he too cited Orange County v. Singh as binding authority that the Polk charter is preempted.

If there is legal action, the issue may turn on whether the 2019 decision applies to the Polk County charter, too. But while that case presented facts specific to Orange County, the justices for the majority appeared to rule broadly.

“The Florida Election Code contemplates partisan elections for most offices, and it does not specifically authorize otherwise for county constitutional officers,” the Court wrote.