FI L ED

U.S. COURT OF APPEAL S

EL EVENTH CI RCUI T

J UNE 25, 2009

THOMAS K. KAH

N

CL ERK [ P U B L I S H ]

I N T H E U N I T E D S T A T E S C O U R T O F A P P E A L S

F O R T H E E L E V E N T H C I R C U I T

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

N o

. 0 8

- 1 5 1 1 5

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

D

. C

. D o c k e t N o

. 0 8

- 0 0 6 3 5

- C V

- F T M

- 2 9 S P C

C I T I Z E N S F O R P O L I C E A C C O U N T A B I L I T Y P O L I T I C A L

C O M M I T T E E

,

F L O R I D A S T A T E C O N F E R E N C E O F T H E N A T I O N A L

A S S O C I A T I O N F O R T H E A D V A N C E M E N T

O F C O L O R E D P E O P L E

,

P l a i n t i f f s

- A p p e l l e e s

,

v e r s u s

K U R T S

. B R O W N I N G

, i n h i s c a p a c i t y a s S e c r e t a r y o f S t a t e o f

t h e S t a t e o f F l o r i d a

, S H A R O N L

. H A R R I N G T O N

, i n h e r o f f i c i a l c a p a c i t y a s S u p e r v i s o r o f

E l e c t i o n s

, L e e C o u n t y

,

D e f e n d a n t s

- A p p e l l a n t s

.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

A p p e a l f r o m t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s D i s t r i c t C o u r t

f o r t h e M i d d l e D i s t r i c t o f F l o r i d a

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ( J u n e 2 5

, 2 0 0 9 )B e f

o r e D U B I N A

, C h i e f J u d g e

, E D M O N D S O N a n d H I L L

, C i r c u i t J u d g e s

.

P E R C U R I A M :

T h i s a p p e a l i s a b o u t v o t i n g

. F l o r i d a S t a t u t e § 1 0 2

. 0 3 1 ( 4 ) s a y s t h a t n o p e r s o n

m a y s o l i c i t v o t e r s “ w i t h i n 1 0 0 f e e t o f t h e e n t r a n c e t o a n y p o l l i n g p l a c e

. . . o r e a r l y

v o t i n g s i t e

, ” a n d b r o a d l y d e f i n e s “ s o l i c i t ” t o i n c l u d e

, a m o n g o t h e r t h i n g s

, “ s e e k i n g

o r a t t e m p t i n g t o s e e k a s i g n a t u r e o n a n y p e t i t i o n [

. ] ” F l a

. S t a t

. § §

1 0 2

. 0 3 1 ( 4 ) ( a )

– ( b )

. T h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e c o d i f i e s t h e F l o r i d a l e g i s l a t u r e ’ s v i e w t h a t 1

t h e r i g h t o f F l o r i d a ’ s c i t i z e n s t o v o t e w a r r a n t s s u b s t a n t i a l p r o t e c t i o n f r o m

c o m m o t i o n

- - t h a t i s

, b u s t l e

, s t i r

, c o n f u s i o n

- - a r o u n d t h e v o t i n g p l a c e

. T o d a y

, w e

m u s t d e c i d e w h e t h e r t h e F l o r i d a l e g i s l a t u r e w e n t t o o f a r i n d e f e n d i n g t h e r i g h t t o

v o t e b y b a n n i n g s o l i c i t a t i o n t h a t t a r g e t s v o t e r s e x i t i n g p o l l i n g p l a c e s a n d t h a t a l s o 2

c o n c e r n s m a t t e r s u n r e l a t e d t o a n y i s s u e t h e n o n t h e b a l l o t

. W e c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e

F l o r i d a l e g i s l a t u r e d i d n o t g o b e y o n d i t s l a w f u l p o w e r a n d

, t h u s

, r e v e r s e t h e d i s t r i c t

c o u r t ’ s d e c i s i o n t o b a r e n f o r c e m e n t o f t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e

.

B a c k g r o u n d

The F lorida statute def

ines “solicit” and “ solicitation” to “include, but not be limited to, 1

seeking or attempting to seek a ny vote, fa ct, opinion, or contribution; distributi ng or attempting

to distribute any

political or ca mpaig n materia l, leafle t, or handout; conduc ting a poll ex cept a s

specifie d in this parag raph; see king or attempting to se ek a sig nature on any petition; and selling

or attempting to sell any

item. The terms ‘solicit’ or ‘solicitation’ shall not be construe d to

prohibit ex it polli ng .” F la. Stat. § 102.031(4)(b)

.

When we re fer

to polling place s in this opi nion, we also mea n ear ly voting sites. 2

2P l a i n t i f f C i t i z e n s f

o r P o l i c e A c c o u n t a b i l i t y P o l i t i c a l C o m m i t t e e i s a p o l i t i c a l

a c t i o n c o m m i t t e e i n t h e S t a t e o f F l o r i d a

. P l a i n t i f f F l o r i d a S t a t e C o n f

e r e n c e o f t h e

N A A C P i s t h e p a r e n t o r g a n i z a t i o n o f 6 0 F l o r i d a b r a n c h e s o f t h e n a t i o n a l N A A C P

.

P l a i n t i f f s s u p p o r t a n a m e n d m e n t t o t h e F o r t M y e r s

, F l o r i d a

, c i t y c h a r t e r t h a t w o u l d

c r e a t e a c i t i z e n o v e r s i g h t p a n e l f o r t h e c i t y p o l i c e d e p a r t m e n t

. T o p l a c e t h e c h a r t e r

a m e n d m e n t o n a b a l l o t

, t h o u g h

, P l a i n t i f f s m u s t g a t h e r s i g n a t u r e s f r o m “ 1 0 p e r c e n t

o f t h e [ c i t y ’ s ] r e g i s t e r e d e l e c t o r s a s o f t h e l a s t p r e c e d i n g m u n i c i p a l g e n e r a l

e l e c t i o n

. ” F l a

. S t a t

. § 1 6 6

. 0 3 1 ( 1 )

. P l a i n t i f f s c l a i m t h a t t h e b e s t w a y t o o b t a i n

s i g n a t u r e s i s t o a p p r o a c h v o t e r s e x i t i n g p o l l i n g p l a c e s

.

I n J a n u a r y 2 0 0 8

, P l a i n t i f f C i t i z e n s f

o r P o l i c e A c c o u n t a b i l i t y P o l i t i c a l

C o m m i t t e e t r i e d t o s o l i c i t s i g n a t u r e s f r o m v o t e r s l e a v i n g a p o l l i n g p l a c e i n F o r t

M y e r s

. A l t h o u g h t h e p r o p o s e d c h a r t e r a m e n d m e n t r e l a t e d t o n o t h i n g t h e n o n t h e

3

b a l l o t

, e l e c t i o n o f

f i c i a l s

, i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e

, b a n n e d t h e

s i g n a t u r e

- g a t h e r e r s f

r o m s o l i c i t i n g v o t e r s w i t h i n 1 0 0 f e e t o f t h e p o l l i n g p l a c e

.

P l a i n t i f f s s a y t h a t m a n y v o t e r s w e r e a b l e t o p a r k

, v o t e

, a n d l e a v e w i t h o u t

i n t e r a c t i n g w i t h t h e s i g n a t u r e

- g a t h e r e r s

.

T h e n i n A u g u s t 2 0 0 8

, P l a i n t i f f s f i l e d s u i t a n d s o u g h t i n

j u n c t i v e r e l i e f u n d e r

Plaintiff Florida State Confe renc e of the NAACP did not joi n the petition-circ ulation 3

eff ort until April 2008.

-3-4 2 U

. S

. C

. § 1 9 8 3 a g a i n s t K u r t S

. B r o w n i n g

, i n h i s c a p a c i t y a s S e c r e t a r y o f S t a t e o f

t h e S t a t e o f F l o r i d a

, a n d S h a r o n L

. H a r r i n g t o n

, i n h e r c a p a c i t y a s S u p e r v i s o r o f

E l e c t i o n s i n L e e C o u n t y

, F l o r i d a ( c o l l e c t i v e l y

, t h e S t a t e )

. P l a i n t i f f s c l a i m e d t h a t

t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e v i o l a t e d t h e i r F i r s t A m e n d m e n t r i g h t t o e n g a g e i n p o l i t i c a l

s p e e c h a t p o l l i n g p l a c e s

. P l a i n t i f f s a s k e d t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t t o d e c l a r e t h e F l o r i d a

s t a t u t e u n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l o n i t s f a c e a n d a s i t a p p l i e d t o t h e i r e x i t

- s o l i c i t a t i o n e f f o r t s

.

P l a i n t i f f s a l s o s o u g h t t o e n

j o i n t h e S t a t e f

r o m e n f o r c i n g t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e a g a i n s t

t h e m w h e n t h e y s o l i c i t e d v o t e r s l e a v i n g p o l l i n g p l a c e s o n e l e c t i o n d a y l a t e r i n

A u g u s t

. A s w i t h t h e J a n u a r y e l e c t i o n

, t h e p r o p o s e d c h a r t e r a m e n d m e n t r e l a t e d t o

n o t h i n g o n t h e b a l l o t i n t h e A u g u s t e l e c t i o n

.

T h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t h e l d o r a l a r g u m e n t j u s t b e f o r e t h e A u g u s t e l e c t i o n

. T h e

n e x t d a y

, t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t e n t e r e d a p r e l i m i n a r y i n j u n c t i o n e n

j o i n i n g t h e S t a t e

f r o m e n f o r c i n g t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e a g a i n s t P l a i n t i f f s a t p o l l i n g p l a c e s o n e l e c t i o n

d a y

. T h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t c o n c l u d e d t h a t t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e w a s p r o b a b l y 4

u n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l a s i t a p p l i e d t o P l a i n t i f f s ’ e x i t

- s o l i c i t a t i o n e f

f o r t s b e c a u s e t h e S t a t e

h a d p r o d u c e d l i t t l e e v i d e n c e t h a t t h e e x i t

- s o l i c i t a t i o n b a n w a s n e c e s s a r y t o s e r v e a

The district cour

t refuse d to issue an injunction on the g round that the F lorida statute is 4

fac ially unconstitutional. The district court, instead, g rante d the injunction on an “a s applied”

basis: the State -- e ven extremely close to the polls -- c ould not enforc e or thre aten to enf orce the

Florida statute “a s to Pl aintiffs’ pe ace ful, order ly and non-disruptive ( 1) solicitation of signatures

(2) f or their pe tition t o place an ame ndment of the F ort My ers City Charter on a future ballot (3)

from voter s at polling plac es and e arly voting sites (4) afte r the voter s have vote d (5) dur ing the

Aug ust 26, 2008 election and its ea rly voting pe riod.”

-4-c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t o r t h a t i t w a s s u f f i c i e n t l y d r a w n t o a c h i e v e t h a t e n d

. T h e S t a t e

a p p e a l s

. 5

S t a n d a r d o f R e v i e w

W e r e v i e w a p r e l i m i n a r y i n j u n c t i o n f

o r a n a b u s e o f d i s c r e t i o n

. K l a y v

.

U n i t e d H e a l t h g r o u p

, I n c

. , 3 7 6 F

. 3 d 1 0 9 2

, 1 0 9 6 ( 1 1 t h C i r

. 2 0 0 4 )

. A d i s t r i c t c o u r t

a b u s e s i t s d i s c r e t i o n i f i t a p p l i e s a n i n c o r r e c t l e g a l s t a n d a r d

, a p p l i e s t h e l a w i n a n

u n r e a s o n a b l e o r i n c o r r e c t m a n n e r

, f o l l o w s i m p r o p e r p r o c e d u r e s i n m a k i n g a

d e t e r m i n a t i o n

, o r m a k e s f i n d i n g s o f f

a c t t h a t a r e c l e a r l y e r r o n e o u s

. I d

. W e r e v i e w

d e n o v o q u e s t i o n s o f l a w

. U n i t e d S t a t e s v

. E n d o t e c

, I n c

. , 5 6 3 F

. 3 d 1 1 8 7

, 1 1 9 4

I n late 2008, the district cour t concluded tha t it had no case or controve rsy befor e it and, 5

thus, dismi ssed the ca se af ter Plaintiffs alleg ed that they acquir ed the r equisite number of

signa tures to place the proposed c harte r ame ndment on a ballot. No par ty has ar g ued, howe ver,

that this appeal is moot or that we othe rwise lac k jurisdiction. W e have considere d the matter of

our jurisdiction independe ntly , and we conclude that this appeal re mains worthy of our a ttention

beca use the e lection-re lated issue involving the State and, at lea st, Pl aintiff F lorida State

Confere nce of

the NAACP -- the issue of the rig ht to eng ag e in pea cef ul exi t solicitation about

non-ballot issues near

polling plac es -- is “ca

pable of repe tition, y et eva ding r eview.” Sierra

Club v. Martin, 110 F.3d 1551, 1554 (11th Cir. 1997) (pr eliminary injunction ex pired but appe al

not moot where se asonal na ture of bir d nesting made it likely that fore st service would fac e

another injunction and wher e dura tion of injunction was too short to allow for appe llate re view

befor e injunction expired); see a lso Fed. Ele ction Comm’n v. W is. Right To L ife, I nc., 127 S. Ct.

2652, 2663 (2007) ( “We have rec og nized that the ‘ca pable of repe tition, y et eva ding r eview’

doctrine, in the c ontext of ele ction case s, is appropriate when ther e ar e ‘a s applied’ c halleng es as

well as in the more ty

pical ca se involving only

fac ial attacks. Requir ing r epetition of eve ry

‘leg ally rele vant’ c hara cter istic of an as- applied cha lleng e-dow n to the last detail-would

eff ectively overr ule this statement by

making this ex ception unava ilable for vir tually all

as-a pplied challeng es.”) (interna l quotation marks and citation omitted); Storer v. B rown, 94 S.

Ct. 1274, 1282 n.8 (1974) (althoug h pertinent e lection was “ long ove r,” a ppeal c oncer

ning

elec tion-relate d statute not moot because “construc tion of the statute, an unde rstanding of its

opera tion, and possible constituti onal limits on its application, will have the e ffe ct of simplify ing

future c halleng es, thus incre asing the likelihood that timely filed ca ses ca

n be adjudicated bef

ore

an ele ction is held”).

-5-( 1 1 t h C i r

. 2 0 0 9 )

.

D i s c u s s i o n

A p r e l i m i n a r y i n

j u n c t i o n i s a n “ e x t r a o r d i n a r y a n d d r a s t i c r e m e d y

. ”

M c D o n a l d ’ s C o r p

. v

. R o b e r t s o n

, 1 4 7 F

. 3 d 1 3 0 1

, 1 3 0 6 ( 1 1 t h C i r

. 1 9 9 8 ) ( q u o t i n g

A l l C a r e N u r s i n g S e r v

. , I n c

. v

. B e t h e s d a M e m ’ l H o s p

. , I n c

. , 8 8 7 F

. 2 d 1 5 3 5

, 1 5 3 7

( 1 1 t h C i r

. 1 9 8 9 ) )

. T o s e c u r e a n i n j u n c t i o n

, a p a r t y m u s t p r o v e f o u r e l e m e n t s : ( 1 ) a

s u b s t a n t i a l l i k e l i h o o d o f s u c c e s s o n t h e m e r i t s ; ( 2 ) i r r e p a r a b l e i n j u r y a b s e n t a n

i n j u n c t i o n ; ( 3 ) t h e i n

j u r y o u t w e i g h s w h a t e v e r d a m a g e a n i n j u n c t i o n m a y c a u s e t h e

o p p o s i n g p a r t y ; a n d ( 4 ) a n i n j u n c t i o n i s n o t a d v e r s e t o t h e p u b l i c i n t e r e s t

. I d

.

T h e S t a t e c h a l l e n g e s o n a p p e a l o n l y t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t ’ s c o n c l u s i o n t h a t

P l a i n t i f f s e s t a b l i s h e d a s u b s t a n t i a l l i k e l i h o o d o f s u c c e s s o n t h e m e r i t s o f t h e i r c l a i m

t h a t t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e i s u n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l a s i t a p p l i e s t o e x i t

- s o l i c i t a t i o n e f f o r t s

.

T h e S t a t e a d m i t s t h a t t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e i n f r i n g e s s o m e o n P l a i n t i f

f s ’ r i g h t t o

e n g a g e i n p o l i t i c a l s p e e c h ( s e e M e y e r v

. G r a n t

, 1 0 8 S

. C t

. 1 8 8 6

, 1 8 9 2 ( 1 9 8 8 ) ) b u t 6

c o n t e n d s t h a t t h e r e s t r i c t i o n i s n e c e s s a r y a n d n a r r o w l y t a i l o r e d t o p r o t e c t t h e

, a t

l e a s t

, e q u a l l y c r i t i c a l r i g h t t o v o t e f r e e f r o m i n t i m i d a t i o n

, i n t e r f e r e n c e

, a n d f

r a u d

.

I n B u r s o n v

. F r e e m a n

, 1 1 2 S

. C t

. 1 8 4 6 ( 1 9 9 2 )

, t h e S u p r e m e C o u r t a d d r e s s e d

Plaintiffs contend that the F lorida statute also infr inge s some on their F irst Amendment 6

rig ht to eng ag e in political association. B ut even if true , the additional infring ement has no

materia l affe ct on the ana ly sis otherwise applica ble her e; so we discuss it no furthe r.

-6-t h e f

a c i a l c o n s t i t u t i o n a l i t y o f a T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e t h a t p r o s c r i b e d c a m p a i g n a c t i v i t y

w i t h i n 1 0 0 f

e e t o f a p o l l i n g p l a c e

. I d

. a t 1 8 4 8

. C o n s i d e r i n g t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e 7

a s a c o n t e n t

- b a s e d r e s t r i c t i o n o n p o l i t i c a l s p e e c h i n a p u b l i c f o r u m

, t h e s t a t u t e

c o u l d s u r v i v e o n l y i f i t w a s “ n e c e s s a r y t o s e r v e a c o m p e l l i n g s t a t e i n t e r e s t ” a n d

w a s “ n a r r o w l y d r a w n t o a c h i e v e t h a t e n d

. ” I d

. a t 1 8 5 1 ( q u o t i n g P e r r y E d u c

. A s s ’ n

v

. P e r r y L o c a l E d u c a t o r s ’ A s s ’ n

, 1 0 3 S

. C t

. 9 4 8

, 9 5 5 ( 1 9 8 3 ) )

.

T h e S u p r e m e C o u r t u p h e l d t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e

. I n d o i n g s o

, a p l u r a l i t y 8

o f t h e S u p r e m e C o u r t f i r s t r e v i e w e d w h e t h e r T e n n e s s e e h a d a c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t 9

t o s u p p o r t i t s s t a t u t e

. T e n n e s s e e o f f e r e d t w o : ( 1 ) p r o t e c t i n g v o t e r s f r o m c o n f u s i o n

The Te nnessee statute banne d within 100 feet of a polling plac e “the display of 7

campa ign poste rs, sig ns or other c ampaig n materia ls, distribut ion of ca mpaig n materia ls, and

solicitation of votes for or a g ainst any person or political party

or position on a question[.] ”

Bur son, 112 S. Ct . at 1848. L ike the F lorida statute, which sa ves exit pol ling f

rom its gr asp, F la.

Stat. § 102.031(4)(b), the Tenne ssee statute a lso did not restrict exit polling. B urson, 112 S. Ct.

at 1855. We express no view on the c onstitut ionality of a statute tha t bans exit polling ar ound

polling plac es.

J ustice B lackmun author ed the plura lity opinion, which Chief J ustice Rehnquist and 8

J ustices White and Kenne dy joined. J ustice Ke nnedy also filed a c oncurr ing opinion, and Justice

Scalia filed a

n opinion concurr ing in the judg ment. J ustice Stevens filed a dissenting opinion,

which Just ices O’ Connor and Souter joined. Just ice Thoma s did not participate in the de cision.

J ustice Scalia joined in the judg ment, but not in the plurality opinion. J ustice Scalia 9

revie wed the T ennesse e statute unde r a le ss exacting standa rd than the stric t scrutiny

applied by

the other Justi ces be cause he believe d that the statute did not restrict spe ech in a “tra ditional

public forum.” I d. at 1859–61 (Sca lia, J ., concur ring in judgment) . His justification, theref ore,

seems to be br oader

than the plura lity

opinion. So, we look to the plurality opinion for g uidance

. Marks v. United States, 97 S. Ct. 990, 994 (1977) (“ When a fra g mented Court dec ides a c ase a nd

no single rationale explaining the re sult enjoy s the assent of f ive J ustices, the holding of the

Court may

be viewe d as that position taken by those Member s who conc urre d in the judgme nts

on the nar rowe st gr ounds.”) ( internal quotation marks omitted).

-7-a n d u n d u e i n f l u e n c e ; a n d ( 2 ) p r e s e r v i n g t h e i n t e g r i t y o f t h e e l e c t i o n p r o c e s s

. I d

. a t

1 8 5 1

– 5 2

. T h e p l u r a l i t y a g r e e d t h a t t h o s e i n t e r e s t s w e r e s u f f i c i e n t l y c o m p e l l i n g t o

w a r r a n t p r o t e c t i o n

. I d

.

T h e p l u r a l i t y t h e n t u r n e d t o w h e t h e r t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e w a s n e c e s s a r y t o

s e r v e t h o s e c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s

. I n t y p i c a l c a s e s i n v o l v i n g s t r i c t

- s c r u t i n y r e v i e w

,

t h e S u p r e m e C o u r t w o u l d l o o k t o t h e s t a t e t o o f f e r e v i d e n c e t h a t t h e p e r t i n e n t

s t a t u t e i s n e c e s s a r y t o p r o m o t e t h e c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t

. S e e E u v

. S a n F r a n c i s c o

C o u n t y D e m o c r a t i c C e n t

. C o m m

. , 1 0 9 S

. C t

. 1 0 1 3

, 1 0 2 1

– 2 3 ( 1 9 8 9 )

. B u t i n

B u r s o n

, t h e p l u r a l i t y r e q u i r e d T e n n e s s e e t o p r o d u c e n o e v i d e n c e o f n e c e s s i t y

.

B u r s o n

, 1 1 2 S

. C t

. a t 1 8 5 6

. I n s t e a d

, t h e p l u r a l i t y r e l i e d o n t h e l o n g h i s t o r y o f

r e g u l a t i o n t o c o m b a t e l e c t i o n m i s c o n d u c t

, t h e s u b s t a n t i a l c o n s e n s u s i n f a v o r o f a

s e c r e t b a l l o t s e c u r e d b y a c a m p a i g n

- f r e e z o n e t h a t e m e r g e d f r o m t h a t h i s t o r y

, a n d

c o m m o n s e n s e t o c o n c l u d e “ t h a t s o m e r e s t r i c t e d z o n e a r o u n d t h e v o t i n g a r e a ” w a s

n e c e s s a r y t o s e c u r e T e n n e s s e e ’ s c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s

. I d

. ( e m p h a s i s i n o r i g i n a l )

.

T h e p l u r a l i t y l a s t e x a m i n e d w h e t h e r t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e w a s n a r r o w l y

t a i l o r e d

. T o p a s s t h i s t e s t

, a s t a t e n o r m a l l y m u s t s h o w t h a t t h e p e r t i n e n t s t a t u t e

u s e d t h e l e a s t r e s t r i c t i v e m e a n s a v a i l a b l e t o s e r v e t h e c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t

. S e e

B o o s v

. B a r r y

, 1 0 8 S

. C t

. 1 1 5 7

, 1 1 6 8 ( 1 9 8 8 )

. T h e p l u r a l i t y r e c o g n i z e d

, h o w e v e r

,

t h a t i t f a c e d a u n i q u e s i t u a t i o n b e c a u s e o f t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f p r o t e c t i n g t h e r i g h t t o

-8-v o t e a n d t h e d i f f i c u l t i e s i n a n d d a n g e r s o f r e q u i r i n g T e n n e s s e e t o d e m o n s t r a t e t h e

e f f e c t s o f i t s s t a t u t e o n p o l i t i c a l s t a b i l i t y

. B u r s o n

, 1 1 2 S

. C t

. a t 1 8 5 6

– 5 7

. S o t h e 1 0

p l u r a l i t y d e p a r t e d f

r o m t h e c u s t o m a r y a n a l y s i s a n d a p p l i e d a m o d i f i e d “ b u r d e n o f

p r o o f ” u n d e r w h i c h t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e w a s s u f f i c i e n t l y t a i l o r e d i f i t w a s

“ r e a s o n a b l e ” a n d d i d n o t “ s i g n i f i c a n t l y i m p i n g e o n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l l y p r o t e c t e d

r i g h t s

. ” I d

. a t 1 8 5 7 ( e m p h a s i s i n o r i g i n a l )

. T h e p l u r a l i t y c o n c l u d e d t h a t t h e m i n o r

g e o g r a p h i c l i m i t a t i o n i n t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e

- - 1 0 0 f e e t

- - s a t i s f

i e d t h i s m o r e

l e n i e n t s t a n d a r d

. I d

. T h e s t a t u t e w a s c o n s t i t u t i o n a l

.

T h e p a r t i e s d i s p u t e t h e e x t e n t t o w h i c h B u r s o n a f f e c t s t h i s c a s e

. T h e S t a t e

s a y s t h a t t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e i s n o d i f f e r e n t t h a n t h e T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e i n B u r s o n

a n d

, t h u s

, t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e s h o u l d s u r v i v e f o r t h e s a m e r e a s o n s

. P l a i n t i f f s

, o n t h e

o t h e r h a n d

, c l a i m t h a t t h e f a c t s i n B u r s o n a r e m a t e r i a l l y d i f f e r e n t b e c a u s e t h e r e a

c a m p a i g n w o r k e r w a n t e d t o s o l i c i t v o t e s o n e l e c t i o n d a y

, w h i l e h e r e P l a i n t i f f s a i m

The plura lity

explained those difficulties and da ng ers this way : 1 0

Elections vary from y ear to y ear

, and place to place

. I t is there fore difficult to make

specific finding s about the eff ects of a voting reg ulation. Moreove r, the reme dy for

a tainted elec tion is an imperfe ct one. Rerunning an elec tion would have a neg ative

impact on voter turnout. Thus, requiring proof that a 100-foot boundary is perf ectly

tailored to deal with voter intimi dation and elec tion fra ud would nece ss i t at e t hat a

State ’s p o l itical sy stem sustain some level of damag e befor e the leg islature could

take c orre ctive ac tion.

Bur son, 112 S. Ct . at 1856–57 (interna l quotation marks and footnote omitted).

-9-o n l y t o s e e k t h e s u p p o r t i n g s i g n a t u r e s o f v o t e r s

- - w h o h a d a l r e a d y v o t e d

- - a b o u t a

n o n

- b a l l o t i s s u e

.

W e a c c e p t t h a t B u r s o n d o e s n o t b i n d u s h e r e ; t h e m a t e r i a l f a c t s a r e d i f

f e r e n t

i n s o m e w a y s

. N e v e r t h e l e s s

, w e b e l i e v e t h a t t h e B u r s o n p l u r a l i t y o p i n i o n i s h i g h l y

p e r s u a s i v e ; a n d w e e x t e n d i t s r e a s o n i n g t o t h e f a c t s o f t h i s c a s e

.

1

. C o m p e l l i n g I n t e r e s t

U n d e r t h e B u r s o n p l u r a l i t y ’ s s t a n d a r d

, w e m u s t f i r s t e x a m i n e w h e t h e r t h e

S t a t e h a s a c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t t o s u p p o r t i t s s t a t u t e

. T h e S t a t e c o n t e n d s t h a t i t

s h a r e s t h e s a m e c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s a s T e n n e s s e e i n B u r s o n : ( 1 ) p r o t e c t i n g v o t e r s

f r o m c o n f u s i o n a n d u n d u e i n f

l u e n c e ; a n d ( 2 ) p r e s e r v i n g t h e i n t e g r i t y o f t h e

e l e c t i o n p r o c e s s

. P l a i n t i f f s t a k e n o i s s u e w i t h t h e p r e s e n c e o r l e g i t i m a c y o f t h o s e

c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s i n t h i s c a s e

. N o r d o w e

.

2

. N e c e s s i t y

H a v i n g i d e n t i f

i e d t h e p e r t i n e n t c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s

, w e t u r n t o t h e

m o r e d i f f i c u l t q u e s t i o n o f w h e t h e r t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e i s n e c e s s a r y t o s e r v e t h o s e

i n t e r e s t s

. T h e S t a t e c l a i m s t h a t i t n e e d n o t p r o d u c e e v i d e n c e o f e x i t s o l i c i t o r s

i n t i m i d a t i n g v o t e r s o r i n t e r f e r i n g w i t h t h e e l e c t i o n p r o c e s s t o p r o v e n e c e s s i t y

.

I n s t e a d

, t h e S t a t e a s s e r t s t h a t i t

, l i k e T e n n e s s e e i n B u r s o n

, m a y r e l y o n o u r

c o u n t r y ’ s l o n g h i s t o r y o f e l e c t i o n r e g u l a t i o n

, t h e w i d e s p r e a d a g r e e m e n t t h a t

-10-e m e r g e d f

r o m t h a t h i s t o r y

, a n d c o m m o n s e n s e t o s h o w t h a t t h e b a n o n e x i t

s o l i c i t a t i o n w i t h i n 1 0 0 f e e t o f a p o l l i n g p l a c e i s n e c e s s a r y t o p r o m o t e i t s

c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s

.

P l a i n t i f f s c r i t i c i z e t h i s a p p r o a c h

. T h e y s a y t h a t e x i t s o l i c i t a t i o n i s a p e a c e f u l

,

n o n

- d i s r u p t i v e a c t i v i t y t a r g e t i n g o n l y t h o s e v o t e r s w h o h a v e a l r e a d y v o t e d a n d 1 1

c l a i m t h a t t h i s “ a l r e a d y

- v o t e d ” f e a t u r e d i s t i n g u i s h e s t h e i r c o n d u c t f r o m t h e m o r e

i n t i m i d a t i n g

, v i o l e n t

, a n d u n s a v o r y b e h a v i o r t a l k e d a b o u t i n t h e B u r s o n p l u r a l i t y

o p i n i o n

. P l a i n t i f

f s

, t h e r e f o r e

, a r g u e t h a t t h e S t a t e m a y n o t r e l y o n t h e h i s t o r i c a l 1 2

e v i d e n c e o f e l e c t i o n a b u s e d i s c u s s e d i n t h e B u r s o n p l u r a l i t y o p i n i o n b u t m u s t

i n s t e a d o f

f e r i t s o w n p r o o f t h a t t h e b a n o n e x i t s o l i c i t a t i o n i n t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e i s

n e c e s s a r y

. E c h o i n g t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t

, P l a i n t i f f s s a y t h a t t h e S t a t e h a s p r o d u c e d n o

Plaintiffs compare exit solicitation to ex it polli ng . Plaintiffs contend that the F lorida 1 1

statute ca nnot lawfully

prohibit one and pe rmit the other bec ause, a ccor ding to Plaintiffs, the

activities are constitutionally indisti ng uishable. B ut we disag ree : exi t polling does not include

advocating f

or the succ ess of some political proposa l or ca ndidate. L ike other c ourts befor e us,

we se e funda

mental diffe renc es betwe en the two a ctivities and, there fore , reje ct the compa rison.

See, e.g ., Schirmer v. Edw ards, 2 F .3d 117, 122 (5th Cir. 1993) (e x it polli ng case s not applicable

to solicitation cases); Am. B road. Co. v. B lackwe ll, 479 F. Supp. 2d 719, 738 (S.D. Ohio 2006)

(“[E]x it polli ng cannot r easona bly be construe d as a f

orm of ele ctioneer ing unde r any definition

of that term.” ). More over, the plurality in Burson e x pressly

said that the Tenne ssee statute did

not need to prohibit exit polling to survive strict- scrutiny revie w. B urson, 112 S. Ct. at 1855.

Plaintiffs claim that the plurality in Burson f

ound no history

of ele ctora l abuse by

and 1 2

no history of ele ction-re form ef

forts direc ted at exit sol icitors. They cite as suppor

t the

following lang uag e in the plura lity opinion: “[ T]here is simply no evidenc e that political

candida tes have used other f orms of solicitation or exit polling to commit such elec toral abuse s.”

I d. at 1856. B ut we believe that the plurality is refe rring

in this di ctum to “cha

ritable a nd

commerc ial solicitation” and not, as Plaintiffs sug g est, to forms of political ca nvassing like exit

solicitation. S o we a ffor d this arg ument littl e we ight.

-11-s u c h e v i d e n c e

.

A b o u t h i s t o r y

, w e a g r e e w i t h t h e S t a t e

. W e s i m p l y c a n n o t a c c e p t t h a t e x i t

s o l i c i t a t i o n i s s o d i f

f e r e n t f r o m t h e o t h e r p o l i t i c a l c o n d u c t h i g h l i g h t e d i n B u r s o n t o

c o m p e l a d i f

f e r e n t r e s u l t h e r e

. A s w e s e e i t

, c o m m o t i o n t i e d t o e x i t s o l i c i t a t i o n i s

a s c a p a b l e o f i n t i m i d a t i n g a n d c o n f u s i n g t h e e l e c t o r a t e a n d i m p e d i n g t h e v o t i n g

p r o c e s s

- - e v e n d e t e r r i n g p o t e n t i a l v o t e r s f r o m c o m i n g t o t h e p o l l s

- - a s o t h e r k i n d s

o f p o l i t i c a l c a n v a s s i n g o r p o l i t i c a l a c t i o n a r o u n d t h e p o l l s

. T h i s o b s e r v a t i o n s e e m s

e s p e c i a l l y t r u e g i v e n t h e r e a l i t y t h a t p o l l i n g p l a c e s a r e o f s u c h a d i v e r s e s i z e a n d

s h a p e

, i n c l u d i n g s o m e t i m e s u s i n g t h e s a m e d o o r s t o e n t e r a n d e x i t t h e p o l l i n g

p l a c e

, t h a t v o t e r s w a i t i n g t o c a s t t h e i r b a l l o t w i l l o f t e n b e c l o s e t o a n d

i n d i s t i n g u i s h a b l e f

r o m v o t e r s w h o h a v e a l r e a d y d o n e s o

. A l t h o u g h P l a i n t i f f s 1 3

s u g g e s t t h a t e l e c t i o n o f

f i c i a l s c a n p o l i c e t h e p o l l s t o e n s u r e t h a t e x i t s o l i c i t a t i o n

r e m a i n s p e a c e f

u l a n d t a r g e t s o n l y v o t e r s w h o h a v e a l r e a d y v o t e d

, w e b e l i e v e t h i s

p r o p o s a l p l a c e s t o o g r e a t a b u r d e n o n t h o s e o f f i c i a l s t o m a k e s p l i t

- s e c o n d d e c i s i o n s

o n w h o i s b e i n g s o l i c i t e d

, o n h o w t h e y a r e b e i n g s o l i c i t e d

, a n d a b o u t w h a t t h e y a r e

b e i n g s o l i c i t e d : a n i n v i t a t i o n t o c o n t r o v e r s y a n d m o r e d i s t u r b a n c e s t h e n a n d t h e r e

.

Plaintiffs even a cknowledg ed in their c omplaint when they descr ibed the method by 1 3

which they

intended to eng ag e in exit s olicitation the difficulty in targeting onl y those v oters who

have alre ady vote d : “A petition circ ulator will stand near the exit t o the polling plac e, in a

position t o maxi miz e the likelihood of intera cting with voters who have alre ady cast their ba llots

. . . .” (e mphasis added)

.

-12-B u t e v e n i n P l a i n t i f f s ’ i m a g i n e d p e r f

e c t w o r l d w h e n a b s o l u t e l y o n l y t h o s e

p e o p l e w h o h a v e v o t e d a r e s o l i c i t e d

, o u r b e l i e f d o e s n o t w a i v e r

. T h e S t a t e w a n t s

p e a c e a n d o r d e r a r o u n d i t s p o l l i n g p l a c e s

, a n d w e a c c o r d s i g n i f i c a n t v a l u e t o t h a t

d e s i r e f o r i t p r e s e r v e s t h e i n t e g r i t y a n d d i g n i t y o f t h e v o t i n g p r o c e s s a n d

e n c o u r a g e s p e o p l e t o c o m e a n d t o v o t e

. S e e B u c k l e y v

. A m

. C o n s t i t u t i o n a l L a w

F o u n d

. , I n c

. , 1 1 9 S

. C t

. 6 3 6

, 6 4 0 ( 1 9 9 9 ) ( a c k n o w l e d g i n g t h a t “ t h e r e m u s t b e a

s u b s t a n t i a l r e g u l a t i o n o f e l e c t i o n s i f t h e y a r e t o b e f a i r a n d h o n e s t a n d i f s o m e s o r t

o f o r d e r

, r a t h e r t h a n c h a o s

, i s t o a c c o m p a n y t h e d e m o c r a t i c p r o c e s s e s ” ) ( q u o t i n g

S t o r e r

, 9 4 S

. C t

. a t 1 2 7 9 ) ; C l e a n U p ‘ 8 4 v

. H e i n r i c h

, 7 5 9 F

. 2 d 1 5 1 1

, 1 5 1 4 ( 1 1 t h

C i r

. 1 9 8 5 ) ( “ W e r e c o g n i z e t h a t t h e s t a t e h a s a s i g n i f i c a n t i n t e r e s t i n p r o t e c t i n g t h e

o r d e r l y f u n c t i o n i n g o f t h e e l e c t i o n p r o c e s s

. I t m u s t e n s u r e i t s v o t e r s t h a t t h e y m a y

e x e r c i s e t h e i r f

r a n c h i s e w i t h o u t d i s t r a c t i o n

, i n t e r r u p t i o n

, o r h a r a s s m e n t

. ” )

. G i v e n

t h e e x a m p l e o f h i s t o r y

, i f e x i t s o l i c i t a t i o n m u s t b e a l l o w e d c l o s e t o t h e p o l l s

, i t

t a k e s l i t t l e f

o r e s i g h t t o e n v i s i o n p o l l i n g p l a c e s a w a s h w i t h e x i t s o l i c i t o r s

, s o m e

c o m p e t i n g ( a l b e i t p e a c e f u l l y ) f o r t h e a t t e n t i o n o f t h e s a m e v o t e r s a t t h e s a m e t i m e

t o d i s c u s s d i f

f e r e n t i s s u e s o r d i f

f e r e n t s i d e s o f t h e s a m e i s s u e

. A n d w e a c c e p t i t a s

p r o b a b l e t h a t s o m e

- - m a y b e m a n y

- - v o t e r s f a c e d w i t h r u n n i n g t h e g a u n t l e t w i l l

-13-r e f

r a i n f r o m p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n t h e e l e c t i o n p r o c e s s m e r e l y t o a v o i d t h e r e s u l t i n g

c o m m o t i o n w h e n l e a v i n g t h e p o l l s

. 1 4

T h e B u r s o n p l u r a l i t y o p i n i o n t e a c h e s u s t h a t t h e S t a t e n e e d n o t w a i t f o r

a c t u a l i n t e r f

e r e n c e o r v i o l e n c e o r i n t i m i d a t i o n t o e r u p t n e a r a p o l l i n g p l a c e f o r t h e

S t a t e t o a c t

. T h e S t a t e m a y t a k e p r e c a u t i o n s t o p r o t e c t a n d t o f a c i l i t a t e v o t i n g ; 1 5

a n d t h e p e r t i n e n t h i s t o r y i s b r o a d e n o u g h t o p r o v i d e t h e p r o o f o f r e a s o n a b l e n e s s f o r

a z o n e o f o r d e r a r o u n d t h e p o l l s

.

I t i s h a r d f

o r S t a t e e l e c t i o n o f

f i c i a l s t o k n o w t h e p r e c i s e m o m e n t j u s t b e f o r e

s o l i c i t a t i o n b e c o m e s i n t e r f e r e n c e i n t h e e l e c t i o n p r o c e s s

. A n d i f a n e l e c t i o n i s

d i s t u r b e d

, i t i s h a r d t o k n o w w h a t t h e i m p a c t w a s o n t h e e l e c t i o n

. T h e c o s t o f a

d i s t u r b e d e l e c t i o n i s t o o h i g h t o a l l o w t h e S t a t e o n l y t o r e a c t t o d i s t u r b a n c e s b u t n o t

t o p r e v e n t d i s t u r b a n c e s

. W e

, t h e r e f o r e

, r e j e c t t h e c o n t e n t i o n t h a t t h e S t a t e m u s t

o f f e r i t s o w n e v i d e n c e d e m o n s t r a t i n g t h a t t h e b a n o n e x i t s o l i c i t a t i o n i s n e c e s s a r y

I ndeed, a lthough not nec essar y to our conc lusion, the St ate pr oduced e vidence 1 4

confirming that many

Florida voters have complained that their entra nce to a nd exit from the

polls is l ike “r

unning the g auntlet” a

nd have indicated that “they will no longer

participa te in

elec tions unless their acc ess to the polls is better protec ted by the law.”

I n Bur son, the plurality

observe d that Tenne ssee ha d other statutes that made it a crime 1 5

“to interfe re w ith an elec tion or to use violence or intimi dation to preve nt voting.” B urson, 112

S. Ct . at 1855. B ut the plurality rec og nized that Tennessee ’s power to protect the voting proce ss

was broa der tha

n just prohibiti ng actua l interfer ence , violence, or intimi dation. I d. I n a similar

way , the district court injunction limit s the State to prohibiting only conduct that is disorder ly

, disruptive, or not pea cef

ul; but to ease and to prote ct voting, the State’s leg itimate power unde r

the Fe dera l Consti tution goes be y ond what the injunction would allow the State to do. The State

can do mor e to re strict political canva ssing in a sma ll z one ar ound the polls. Thus, the injunction

cannot stand.

-14-t o s e r v e i t s c o m p e l l i n g i n t e r e s t s ; o u r c o u n t r y ’ s l o n g h i s t o r y o f e l e c t i o n r e g u l a t i o n

,

t h e c o n s e n s u s e m e r g i n g f r o m t h a t h i s t o r y

, a n d t h e p r a c t i c a l n e e d t o k e e p v o t e r s a n d

v o t i n g u n d i s t u r b e d a l l p r o v e t h a t t h e b a n i s w a r r a n t e d

. 1 6

3

. N a r r o w l y T a i l o r e d

W e l a s t e x p l o r e t h e b r e a d t h o f t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e

. T o p r o v e t h a t t h e F l o r i d a

s t a t u t e i s n a r r o w l y t a i l o r e d

, t h e S t a t e m u s t s h o w t h a t t h e F l o r i d a S t a t u t e i s

“ r e a s o n a b l e a n d d o e s n o t s i g n i f i c a n t l y i m p i n g e o n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l l y p r o t e c t e d

r i g h t s

. ” B u r s o n

, 1 1 2 S

. C t

. a t 1 8 5 7 ( q u o t i n g M u n r o v

. S o c i a l i s t W o r k e r s P a r t y

,

1 7

1 0 7 S

. C t

. 5 3 3

, 5 3 7

– 3 8 ( 1 9 8 6 ) ) ( e m p h a s i s a d d e d i n B u r s o n )

. T h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e

m i r r o r s i n m a n y r e s p e c t s

- - i n c l u d i n g t h e s i z e o f t h e r e s t r i c t e d z o n e

- - t h e

T e n n e s s e e s t a t u t e u p h e l d i n B u r s o n

. A n d w e c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e i s

s u f f i c i e n t l y t a i l o r e d t o s a t i s f y t h e p e r t i n e n t s t a n d a r d

.

Many other state le g islatures see mingly share the belief

that some solicitation-fre e zone 1 6

around polling place s is necessa ry to protect voter s from conf usion and undue influenc e and to

prese rve the integ rity

and dig nity

of the e lection proc ess, as other states too have e nacte d law

marke dly simil ar to the F lorida statute. See, e .g ., Cal. Elec. Code § 18370 ( 100-foot zone); Colo.

Rev. Stat. § 1-13-714 (100- foot zone); Ga. Code A nn. § 21-2-414( b) (150- foot zone); I daho

Code Ann. § 18-2318( 1) (100- foot zone); Mass. Gen. L aws c h. 54, § 65 (150-f oot zone); Mich.

Comp. L aws § 168.744(2) (100-f oot zone); Neb. Rev. Stat. § 32-1524(2) (200-f oot zone); Utah

Code Ann. § 20A-3- 501(2)( a) ( 150-foot zone).

The plura lity

in Burson c autioned that the modified “ burden of proof” applies only 1 7

wher e the pr ohibited activity threa tens to interfe re w ith the act of voting itself or phy sically

interfe res with voter s attempting to c ast their ballot. B urson, 112 S. Ct. at 1856 n.11. W e

believe tha t exi t solicitation of the kind in thi s case trig g ers the a pplication of the B urson

plurality ’s standar d.

-15-C o n c l u s i o n

W e a c c e p t t h a t t h e r i g h t t o e n g a g e i n p o l i t i c a l d i s c o u r s e i s “ t h e e s s e n c e o f

s e l f

- g o v e r n m e n t

. ” G a r r i s o n v

. L o u i s i a n a

, 8 5 S

. C t

. 2 0 9

, 2 1 6 ( 1 9 6 4 )

. B u t v o t i n g i s

a b o u t t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t t h i n g t h e r e i s

. A n d a s h i s t o r y h a s t a u g h t u s

, t h e r i g h t o f

p o l i t i c a l d i s c o u r s e i s f

a r f r o m a b s o l u t e : i t m u s t a t t i m e s s t e p a s i d e s o o t h e r

f r e e d o m s s i m i l a r l y p i v o t a l t o o u r r e p u b l i c c a n t h r i v e

. T h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e

, w h i c h

b a l a n c e s t h e r i g h t t o e n g a g e i n p o l i t i c a l s p e e c h a g a i n s t t h e r i g h t t o v o t e w i t h o u t

i n t e r f e r e n c e a n d h a r a s s m e n t

, r e p r e s e n t s o n e o f t h o s e t i m e s

.

W e s t r e s s t h e s h o r t t i m e ( a f e w d a y s a y e a r ) a n d s m a l l a r e a ( l e s s t h a n a

f o o t b a l l f i e l d ) i n w h i c h t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e s u p p r e s s e s s o m e p o l i t i c a l s p e e c h a r o u n d

t h e p o l l s ; P l a i n t i f

f s a r e f r e e t o s o l i c i t s i g n a t u r e s u n e n c u m b e r e d m o s t d a y s a y e a r

a n d t o s o l i c i t s i g n a t u r e s o u t s i d e t h e s o l i c i t a t i o n

- f r e e z o n e a l l d a y s a y e a r

. A n d b y

t h e w a y

, w e a r e n o t a l o n e i n o u r d e c i s i o n : o t h e r c o u r t s

, i n c a s e s i n v o l v i n g p e t i t i o n s

,

h a v e a l s o u p h e l d s t a t u t e s e s t a b l i s h i n g s o l i c i t a t i o n

- f r e e z o n e s a r o u n d p o l l i n g

p l a c e s

. W e b e l i e v e t h a t t h e s a n c t i t y o f t h e v o t i n g p r o c e s s a n d t h e a b u s e i t h a s

1 8

h i s t o r i c a l l y f

a c e d m u s t a l l o w t h e F l o r i d a l e g i s l a t u r e t o e x e r c i s e s o m e f o r e s i g h t

, t o

For example, in United Food & Commercial Workers L ocal 1099 v. City of Sidney , 364 1 8

F.3d 738 ( 6th Cir. 2004), the Six th Circuit Court of Appeals applied the Bur son plurality ’s

standard a

nd aff irmed the dismissal of a c halleng e to an Ohio statute tha t prohibited solicitation

within 100 feet of a

polling plac e. I d. at 748. And ea rlier, in Schirmer , the Fif

th Circuit Court of

Appea ls, also rely ing on the Bur son plurality ’s standar d, upheld a L ouisiana statute that

prohibited solicitation about non-ballot issues within 600 feet of a polling plac e. Schirmer , 2

F.3d a t 119.

-16-t a k e p r e c a u t i o n s

, a n d t o p r o h i b i t q u e s t i o n a b l e c o n d u c t n e a r p o l l i n g p l a c e s b e f o r e

t h a t c o n d u c t p r o v e s i t s d a n g e r ; a c o m p r o m i s e d e l e c t i o n i s t o o g r e a t a h a r m t o

r e q u i r e o t h e r w i s e

.

W e

, t h e r e f

o r e

, c o n c l u d e t o d a y t h a t t h e F l o r i d a s t a t u t e d o e s n o t

v i o l a t e t h e F i r s t A m e n d m e n t b y b a n n i n g P l a i n t i f f s f r o m e n g a g i n g i n e x i t

s o l i c i t a t i o n a b o u t a n o n

- b a l l o t i s s u e w i t h i n 1 0 0 f e e t o f p o l l i n g p l a c e s i n F l o r i d a

.

A c c o r d i n g l y

, t h e d i s t r i c t c o u r t a b u s e d i t s d i s c r e t i o n i n g r a n t i n g P l a i n t i f f s a

p r e l i m i n a r y i n

j u n c t i o n

.

R E V E R S E D

.

-17-