Mike Bloomberg has raised more than $16 million to help Black and Hispanic felons regain voting rights in Florida. Bloomberg's fundraising has helped pay off the fines for at least 32,000 voters.
Axios reports: “A 2018 state constitutional amendment in Florida allows for felons who have completed their sentences to regain their right to vote — so long as they've also paid back any outstanding fines, fees or restitution.”
The Washington Post adds: “The money will go to fund a program organized by the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition to pay the fines, fees and restitution costs for former prisoners who are already registered to vote in Florida but barred by law from participating in the election because of those outstanding debts. Bloomberg, who has committed at least $100 million to electing Biden in the state, raised the money from individuals and foundations over the last week, his advisers said. He saw the donations as a more cost-effective way of adding votes to the Democratic column than investing money to persuade voters who already have the right to vote, a Bloomberg memo said.”
