MIAMI (AFP) — Two top Florida Democrats on Thursday sued their own party in a dispute over the timing of the presidential primary in the state famed for the chaos that held up the 2000 presidential election results for five weeks.
The bitter battle has its roots in Florida's decision to hold its primary elections on January 29, earlier than allowed under the Democrats national rules.
The Democratic National Committee retaliated by voting to exclude the 210 Florida delegates from the 2008 convention where the party's presidential candidate will be picked.
The lawsuit filed by US Senator Bill Nelson and Representative Alcee Hastings claims the DNC's decision would deny millions of voters a say in the electoral process.
"Every one of the more than 4.25 million registered Democratic voters in Florida will be completely disenfranchised and their constitutional rights ... rendered meaningless," Nelson and Hastings said in the lawsuit they filed in Tallahassee, Florida's state capital.
The lawsuit argues that the right of voters trump the rights of a political party, including its right to enforce rules for primary elections.
"The right to vote and have your vote matter is the cornerstone of our democracy," said Nelson. "As to our right to vote, and have that vote count, there can be no debate," he said.
The decision to hold the Florida primaries on January 29 was signed into law by Republican state Governor Charlie Crist, but violates the Democrats national rules that only allow Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada to hold primary elections or caucuses before February 5.
Florida's decision to move up its primary, previously held in March, was seen as a move to give the southeastern state more clout.
The primary process has traditionally been dominated by the northeastern state of New Hampshire and the midwest state of Iowa.
A dozen states are scheduled to hold their primaries on February 5, including New York and California, which have also moved up the dates of the nominating races.
The caucuses and primary elections are due to kick off January 14 in Iowa, more than nine months before the presidential election itself on November 4.
The dispute over the timing of the Florida primary is the latest in a series of electoral controversies in the state where electoral chaos and legal wrangling held up the outcome of the 2000 presidential election for 36 days until the US Supreme Court halted recounts.
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