Tallahassee, Fla. — A new proposed bill could pave the way for the official removal of the Democratic Party from official voting information if passed in this year's legislative session in Tallahassee. 

The bill, currently titled SB 1248, calls for the state Division of Elections to cancel the "filings" of a political party, to include party registration and approved status in any and all elections if that party's platform had previously advocated for slavery, or involuntary servitude. 

Although not explicitly listed, the Democratic Party, which was popular in the nation's South during Reconstruction, would fit the description. Economics and civil rights fueled significant changes in both parties in the years since.

The bill includes language that would require any voter currently registered as a member of a canceled party to be notified by that political party to update their voter registration to an approved and active political party. 

Florida State Senator Blaise Ingoglia (R-Spring Hill) filed the bill, and argued that the motion was a natural extension of the "cancel" movement. 

"For years now, leftist activists have been trying to "cancel" people and companies for things they have said or done in the past," FL State Senator Ingolgia said in a statement. "This includes the removal of statues and memorials, and the renaming of buildings. Using this standard, it would be hypocritical not to cancel the Democrat Party itself for the same reason."

The Democratic Party of Florida was quick to issue their answer to the proposal. 

"Presenting a bill that would disenfranchise 5 million voters is both unconstitutional and unserious. Under Ron DeSantis, Senator Ingoglia is using his office to push bills that are nothing more than publicity stunts instead of focusing on the issues that matter most to Floridians, such as reforming property insurance, addressing housing affordability, and combating climate change," the party said. “The sooner DeSantis and his puppets in the legislature learn that Florida is a Democratic Republic and not a Banana Republic, the better it will be for all Floridians.”

Since 1999, Republicans have controlled by the Florida Legislature and Florida Governor’s Mansion, and currently have a supermajority in the legislative body in Tallahassee. The last Democrat Governor was, technically, Buddy MacKay, who took over in December 1998 when Lawton Chiles died in office with one month left in his term.

Another significant shift in recent years is Florida Republicans now outpacing Democrats in terms of registered voters.

In recent years, the Republican Party of Florida has grown to have more registered voters than Democrats, while the latter has actually lost voters.

According to Florida Department of State, there are currently 5.2 Million Registered Republicans, 4.8 Million Registered Democrats, and  4.0 Million Registered No Party Affiliation. That means that if the bill were to pass through and become law, a significant portion of the state's residents would have their voter registration adjusted.

SB 1248 by Phillip Stucky on Scribd