FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Broward County Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes has dropped her plans to resign a day after Florida Gov. Rick Scott suspended her, accusing her of misfeasance, incompetence and neglect of duty.
On Saturday, Snipes called the move by Scott a "mean-spirited partisan action." Although Snipes did not speak, her supporters held a news conference Saturday, where they announced Snipes had rescinded her resignation.
"The supervisor is being held to a standard that no other supervisor is being held to in the state of Florida," said Burnadette Norris Weeks, a supporter of Snipes.
Snipes, who had served as elections supervisor since 2003, announced last month that she would retire at the end of the year. During last month's recount, Snipes became a lighting rod for controversy. Scott and other Republicans claimed, without evidence, that Broward was the site of widespread voter fraud.
Others accused Snipes of corruption. President Donald Trump had also called for Snipes to be fired.
Snipes and her staff missed several deadlines during the recount process, which was marred by errors.
"The suspension was unwarranted, unjust and unnecessary," Snipes said in a statement.
Snipes said Scott's decision to suspend her was intended to harass her and impact her retirements benefits.
In his statement, Scott said laws were broken during Snipes' term, "including posting election results before polls closed and authorizing the improper destruction of ballots."
Snipes had been admonished in 2016 when her office destroyed ballots in a congressional race against a judge's order.
Scott appointed Peter Antonacci, the president of Enterprise Florida and the former executive director of the South Florida Water Management District, as her replacement.