Florida starts redistricting talks in a growing battle for House control
TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Florida’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives holds the first meeting of its select committee on congressional redistricting on Thursday, as the state becomes the latest to consider redrawing electoral maps amid a partisan battle for every advantage in next year’s midterm elections.
The nationwide wave of redistricting efforts was launched by President Donald Trump, who hopes to reverse the historic trend of his party losing seats in the midterms, and his allies are betting that his adopted state could yield three to five more seats for Republicans. Every seat is crucial, as Democrats only need a net gain of three to control the chamber.
But the redistricting campaign faces major challenges in Florida due to bitter infighting between Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and leaders of the Republican-dominated Legislature, as well as a provision in the state Constitution that explicitly prohibits redrawing maps with the intent to “favor or disfavor any political party or incumbent president.”
DeSantis has expressed support for redistricting and even called for redoing the 2020 U.S. Census, saying Florida was shortchanged in the count, which determines how many congressional seats each state gets.
“We’re going to press this issue,” DeSantis said in August.
This week, in an interview with online news outlet The Floridian, DeSantis raised the possibility of recalling lawmakers to a special session if they don’t get redistricting done during the regular session, scheduled for Jan. 13 to March 13.
The state Senate has so far refused to enter the fray.
Senate President Ben Albritton, also a Republican, said there was “no work in progress” on the issue in his chamber, citing the governor’s desire to respond to it in the spring.
Civil liberties and voting rights organizations say any partisan redistricting in Florida is unconstitutional, and their supporters plan to rally committee meetings to voice their opposition.
“Redrawing the lines for partisan reasons is illegal. Period, period,” said Genesis Robinson, executive director of the voter engagement organization Equal Ground.
Florida has 28 congressional seats, with a 20-8 Republican-Democratic split.
Nationally, mid-cycle redistricting gave nine additional congressional seats that Republicans think they can win and six that Democrats think they can win. However, redistricting is the subject of litigation in several states, and there is also no guarantee that the parties will win the redistributed seats.
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Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-reported issues.
