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Opponents ask court to block new Florida congressional districts
Focusing on a North Florida district that has become a legal and political battleground, voting-rights groups and other plaintiffs are asking a judge to block a congressional redistricting plan pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs filed a motion late Tuesday requesting a temporary injunction, after filing a lawsuit Friday to challenge the plan. Republican lawmakers passed the plan written by the DeSantis administration during a special legislative session last week.
The motion, filed in Leon circuit court, contends that an overhaul of North Florida’s District 5 violates a 2010 state constitutional amendment known as Fair Districts that sets standards for redistricting in the state.
District 5 in recent years has stretched from Jacksonville to west of Tallahassee and has tied together Black communities to help elect a Black candidate. The district is held by U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, a Black Democrat.
But DeSantis has contended the sprawling district was unconstitutionally gerrymandered and his plan passed last week would condense it in the Jacksonville area with far fewer Black voters.
The motion for a temporary injunction argues that the new map violates part of the 2010 constitutional amendment that bars diminishing the ability of minority voters to “elect representatives of their choice.”
“Rather than preserve a North Florida district where Black voters would retain their ability to elect their candidates of choice to Congress, the DeSantis plan [spreads] Black voters among four majority-white districts, thus diminishing their voting strength in violation of the Fair Districts amendment,” the motion reads.
While primary elections are scheduled for Aug. 23, the plaintiffs’ attorneys argued that enough time remains to revamp the redistricting plan.
“While plaintiffs have challenged the DeSantis plan in its entirety, this motion seeks temporary relief solely on the ground that the elimination of CD-5 violates the Florida Constitution’s non-diminishment standard,” a memorandum filed with the motion said. “Any injunction would therefore be limited to a handful of districts in North Florida and thus would not impact election preparations throughout most of the state.”
DeSantis called last week’s special session after vetoing a congressional redistricting plan passed in March by the Legislature. The map drawn by DeSantis’ office passed during the special session, despite fierce opposition that included Democratic lawmakers holding a sit-in on the House floor that temporarily shut down proceedings Thursday.
The map is expected to increase from 16 to 20 the number of congressional seats held by Republicans, based on 2020 election results. Also, it is expected to reduce the number of Black Democrats in the state’s congressional delegation by changing District 5 and District 10 in the Orlando area.
Lawmakers initially supported keeping the current configuration of District 5 as they carried out the once-a-decade reapportionment process. But DeSantis’ general counsel argued that approach would violate the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment because it “assigns voters primarily on the basis of race but is not narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling state interest.”
The League of Women Voters of Florida, the Black Votes Matters Capacity Building Institute, the Equal Ground Education Fund, the League of Women Voters of Florida Education Fund, Florida Rising Together, and 12 registered Democrats from Duval, Leon, Seminole, Orange, Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Miami-Dade counties filed the lawsuit Friday in Leon County circuit court.
