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Judge lets voting suit proceed
©Associated Press
August 2, 2002
MIAMI -- A federal judge has rejected state attempts to avoid trial over presidential election problems that kept blacks from voting in Florida.
The state asked for a summary judgment to kill the lawsuit by the NAACP and other civil rights groups without a trial. But U.S. District Judge Alan Gold ruled Wednesday that they had met the standard for pursuing their lawsuit.
Some counties named in the lawsuit have settled rather than pursue a trial. Duval and Volusia counties are the latest to reach agreement. That leaves Miami-Dade, Hillsborough and Orange counties as defendants along with state agencies.
Trial is set for Aug. 26.
"I know what kind of election we conducted," said Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections Pam Iorio. "To have us targeted as a county that denied individuals voting rights is wrong."
Orange and Miami-Dade elections supervisors indicated they also were prepared to go to trial.
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