TALLAHASSEE –  Yesterday, July 8, in another victory for Florida voters and grassroots democracy, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker imposed a second preliminary injunction on a major provision of HB 1205 — the Legislature’s attempt to undermine the citizen-led amendment process.

Within just two months of the Florida Legislature passing HB 1205, a federal judge has now issued a second preliminary injunction, blocking additional provisions of the law as unconstitutional. This latest decision affirms what voting rights and healthcare advocates have said from the start: HB 1205 is a blatant attempt to suppress Floridians’ free speech and silence their ability to engage in the democratic process.

In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker agreed that the law went too far by barring “entire classes of people from participating in the core political speech” of ballot initiative campaigns. The order underscores the extreme nature of this law. A preliminary injunction is an extraordinary legal measure, granted only when a court believes the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the merits and face irreparable harm. That multiple parts of this law have now been blocked in court speaks volumes about how far the Florida legislature has gone to rig the rules and block citizen-led campaigns like the one to provide healthcare to 1.4 million Floridians.

“Within two months of this law passing, a federal judge has now ruled twice that different parts of it are unconstitutional and violate the constitutional  rights of Floridians to participate and have a say in their state's democracy. These rulings tell you everything you need to know about how extreme this law is,” stated Mitch Emerson, Executive Director of Florida Decides Healthcare. “While we don’t agree with every part of the ruling, today was a great day for our campaign and for Florida voters. We now have a clear and achievable path to get on the ballot. The judge affirmed what we’ve said all along, that all people, including thousands of dedicated volunteers, are able to continue supporting this campaign and have the right to engage in direct democracy. This is a victory for the constitutional rights of Floridians, and  brings us one step closer to providing healthcare access to over a million, including veterans, seniors, women, and working families.”

Background: At the heart of this legal challenge is FDH’s ongoing campaign to place Medicaid expansion on the 2026 ballot, a measure that would provide affordable healthcare to more than 1.4 million Floridians. Despite ongoing legal obstacles and the chilling effect of HB 1205, the Florida Decides Healthcare campaign saw its most successful month of volunteer-led petition collection in June. Fueled by grassroots momentum, volunteers across the state stepped up in record numbers to help move the campaign forward.

Florida Decides Healthcare and its partners will continue to fight for the fundamental rights of all Floridians to make their voices heard — in the courts, in their communities, and at the ballot box.