Valerie Crowder
Valerie Crowder is a freelance reporter based in Panama City, Florida. Before moving to Florida, she covered politics and education for Public Radio East in New Bern, North Carolina. While at PRE, she was also a fill-in host during All Things Considered. She got her start in public radio at WAER-FM in Syracuse, New York, where she was a part-time reporter, assistant producer and host. She has a B.A. in newspaper online journalism and political science from Syracuse University. When she’s not reporting the news, she enjoys reading classic fiction and thrillers, hiking with members of the Florida Trail Association and doing yoga.
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Voter registration groups in Florida are helping fewer citizens sign up to cast an elections ballot, nearly a year after increased penalties for rules violations went into effect. -
A 2023 Florida law states voter registration groups that employ non-U.S. citizens can face fines of up to $250,000, while making it a felony for canvassers to collect personal information. The groups say the law could be “fatal” for them, “to the detriment of marginalized voters across the state.” -
A federal three-judge panel has upheld Florida’s congressional map after finding no constitutional problems with the state’s removal of an African-American performing district in the Big Bend, but the broader legal fight isn't over. -
A proposed ban on the sale of flavored nicotine vaping devices in Florida is heading to Gov. Ron DeSantis, and opponents say they want him to veto it. -
As Miami-Dade County considers new standards for outdoor workers on the back of a record-breaking summer, Florida lawmakers look set to pass legislation which would make local heat protections "void and prohibited" — while also delaying for four years the state’s own ability to enact standards. -
Attorneys for voting rights groups and the state will present arguments over the constitutionality of Florida's congressional map before the state's First District Court of Appeal.
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A federal three-judge panel heard closing arguments on Tuesday in a federal trial over the removal of North Florida's only district where Black voters could elect their candidate of choice. -
A federal trial over Florida’s congressional map could wrap up early this week after attorneys for civil rights groups and voters suing over North Florida’s districts rested their case on Monday afternoon.
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The trial begins Tuesday morning. Several civil rights groups and voters are challenging the map. They argue that it intentionally discriminates against Black voters. -
Attorneys in the case presented arguments for and against maintaining the way U.S. House districts are drawn in North Florida during a hearing in state court on Thursday.
