A lawbreaking Florida elections official has sued to try to get her job back after rescinding her resignation.
Brenda Snipes, 75, announced her resignation shortly after the November midterm elections.
Snipes was serving as elections supervisor for Broward County. During her 15-year tenure, she broke the law multiple times, including illegally destroying ballots.
She brazenly ignored laws guiding the election counting process during recounts for three intensely scrutinized races, including for governor.
Governor and U.S. Sen.-elect Rick Scott suspended Snipes in late November, citing Snipes series of blunders, which also included losing some 2,000 ballots and submitting votes two minutes late in one set of recounts, effectively wasting days of work by her staff.
“After a series of inexcusable actions, it’s clear that there needs to be an immediate change in Broward County and taxpayers should no longer be burdened by paying a salary for a supervisor of elections who has already announced resignation,” Scott said in a statement.
Peter Antonacci, has served the governor in other capacities including as the executive director of South Florida Water Management and as head of business recruitment agency Enterprise Florida.
“That great mission is to see to it that every eligible voter is registered to vote and every vote counts,” Antonacci said. He asked voters to watch him as he accepted the role and pledged to clean up the office.
Federal Lawsuit
Snipes filed the federal lawsuit, which asks a federal judge to reinstate her, on Dec. 17.“Snipes seeks to fight for her reputation and stand up against the embarrassment that has been caused by Governor Scott’s unnecessary and malicious suspension,” states the lawsuit.
“There are false allegations contained within the executive order and Snipes has never had a proper forum to state her position ... At this point, Governor Scott’s allegations have gone unchallenged as he sits ‘high’ on a throne utilizing state resources to continually humiliate Snipes,” it continues.
In her lawsuit, Snipes contends that allegations against her were either untrue or were caused by the governor’s own interference after his U.S. Senate campaign sued her during the recount.
John Tupps, a spokesman for Scott, criticized the lawsuit. “This lawsuit is a desperate move from someone who has already officially submitted her resignation,” Tupps said. “This is simply an attempt by Ms. Snipes to rewrite the history of her failed leadership.”
The lawsuit also targets Senate President Bill Galvano, who said in a memo to senators that there is not enough time to investigate the allegations against Snipes before her resignation was to take effect on Jan. 4. He said a legal review by Senate attorneys had concluded that Snipes had rescinded her unconditional resignation too late.
