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Justices Easily Survive Merit Retention Vote

Three state Supreme Court justices targeted by social conservatives and the Republican Party of Florida easily survived merit retention votes Tuesday.

Justices R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince beat back a campaign their supporters said would threaten the justice system. Pariente said the justices' victory rebuffed an effort by outside special interests to hijack the bench.

Florida Democratic Party chairman Rod Smith said the GOP had over-reached by going after the third branch. 

"I think they kind of bowed to the extreme right of their party and I think it bounced back in their face”, Smith said. “I'm very proud of Florida, and I'm very proud of the Democrats for resisting the impulse to endorse or get involved because I sincerely believe the court is a great check on abuses by the other branches."

Lewis, Pariente and Quince form the backbone of a 5-2, center-left majority that has sometimes thwarted the efforts of GOP lawmakers and governors to move Florida to the right.

Besides striking down several legislative attempts to amend the state's constitution in 2010, the court threw out the first draft of this year's redistricting plan for the state Senate.

No Florida Supreme Court justice has ever lost a merit retention vote.