Judge rules that restrictions on after-hour drop boxes don’t keep Floridians from voting

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A federal judge says restrictions on after-hour drop boxes may make it inconvenient to return ballots outside business hours, but they don’t keep Floridians from voting. Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker issued his decision on Thursday. He previously had ruled that restrictions in Florida’s 2021 election law would have suppressed Black voters. But parts of that decision were overturned by an appellate court and sent back to the Tallahassee judge. Florida lawmakers passed the law after Republican former President Donald Trump made unfounded claims that the 2020 election was stolen. Democrats have called such reforms a partisan attempt to keep some voters from the ballot box.