Florida officials are pushing back against an attempt to ease the state's vote-by-mail procedures amid the COVID-19 pandemic, saying federal lawsuits filed by left-leaning groups are based on "speculative" fears about what might occur later in the year.

In court documents filed Wednesday, lawyers representing Gov. Ron DeSantis and Secretary of State Laurel Lee asked U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle to dismiss a case that is a consolidation of legal challenges filed by groups such as Priorities USA, Dream Defenders and Alianza for Progress and individual plaintiffs.

The challenges seek, among other things, to extend a deadline for vote-by-mail ballots and to require elections officials to pay for postage on mail-in ballots. Plaintiffs also want the court to order state and county elections officials to boost voter-registration outreach and implement protective measures for in-person voting.