On April 24, the Florida Senate Ethics & Elections Committee passed SB 960 by a 3-2 vote. It moves the presidential primary from March, to one week after the New Hampshire primary. That could create a January 29 primary, or even an earlier primary, depending on what New Hampshire does.

The bill also outlaws vote-counting machines with no paper trail.

However, the bill was amended to toughen the rules for groups that carry on voter registration drives, thereby causing Democratic legislators, and many interest groups, to say they will now fight the bill. In 2005, Florida had passed a bill imposing huge fines on groups that carry out voter registration, if they don’t get all the forms turned in quite soon after they have been filled out. But the 2005 law made an exception for political parties. In 2006, a federal court had issued an injunction against the law, citing the discriminatory treatment given to political parties. The 2007 amendment to SB 960 removes the exemption given to political parties, and reduces the fines.