News & Events » News Archive » 2001 Press Releases
Court Refuses to Silence Candidate in North Miami Mayoral Election
April 30, 2001
Miami-Dade County Circuit Court Judge Norman S. Gerstein today rejected a motion to prohibit North Miami Mayoral candidate Duke Sorey from running advertisements that referred to his affiliation with the Democratic Party.
The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Florida and its Greater Miami Chapter defended Mr. Sorey's right to state his party affiliation as essential to the right of voters to receive information about political candidates and a core element of First Amendment freedom of speech.
Josaphat J. Celestin, also a candidate for Mayor of the City of North Miami, sued Duke Sorey based upon a City ordinance that makes all elections in the City non-partisan. The ordinance also makes references to one's political party an unfair campaign practice punishable by a fine of up to $500 and sixty days in jail. Celestin claimed that a radio advertisement broadcast in Kreyol identified Sorey as the "only true democratic candidate" in the race for North Miami Mayor. Celestin asked the Circuit Court to enjoin Sorey's advertisements as violating the ordinance.
Judge Gerstein found that Celestin's request "raised the issue of prior restraint of political speech" which "are the most serious and least tolerable infringement on First Amendment rights." In refusing to enjoin Sorey's advertisements, Judge Gerstein also held that there was "a serious issue as to the constitutionality of the ordinance in question." Finally, he concluded that:
The decision as to which contender for a particular political office should be entrusted with the power of that office rests exclusively with the people. They are entitled to all the information that each candidate can provide about himself, his opponent and their respective positions on the relevant political issues. The entire process is hampered if the information is restricted or unavailable. The public's "need to know" is most critical during an election campaign.
Joe Geller, who along with Peggy Fisher (Geller, Geller, Shienvold, Fisher & Garfinkel, LLP, in Hollywood), represented Sorey as cooperating attorneys for the Greater Miami Chapter of the ACLU, hailed the ruling: "Judge Gerstein was exactly right, more information is better when it comes to electing City officials."
"A non-partisan race simply removes the selection of candidates from control of the political parties, it does not serve as a gag to free speech," said Randall Marshall, Legal Director for the ACLU Foundation of Florida, who served as co-counsel in the case. "Keeping information from voters is never in the interest of democracy."
"The fact that elections in the City of North Miami are non-partisan does not mean that candidates can be prohibited from stating their party affiliation," Marshall added. "Political speech is at the core of First Amendment protections, not only for the candidates but for the voters. A City ordinance simply cannot constitutionally prohibit candidates from stating that they belong to the Republican or Democratic parties. Voters cannot be kept in the dark as a matter of City policy. The City's ordinance providing otherwise violates the United States Constitution."
