TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 Tampa\u2019s redistricting process is officially underway, and some community leaders worry new boundaries could weaken political representation in one of the city\u2019s most historically Black districts.<\/p>\n
By law, Tampa\u2019s four single-member city council districts must have roughly equal population. That requirement means district lines will likely shift as the city continues to grow.<\/p>\n
For Reverend Thomas Scott, the changes are visible across Tampa, including at historic landmarks like Rogers Park Golf Course.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack in the day this is the only place that Black people could come to,\u201d Scott said.<\/p>\n
What You Need To Know<\/p>\n
Redistricting Marks First Time District 5 Isn\u2019t Home to Most Black Voters.\u00a0NAACP President Yvette Lewis Raises Fears of Weakened Voting Power in Historically Black District 5; as district lines are redrawn Today, the course draws visitors from across the city, reflecting broader demographic shifts. Scott said District 5 has changed as well.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no longer a minority-majority district because of the growth that has taken place,\u201d said Scott, senior pastor of 34th Street Church of God.<\/p>\n Redistricting occurs every four years and is overseen by the Hillsborough County Planning Commission<\/a>.<\/p>\n Manager of Strategic Planning Environmental & Research Yassert Gonzalez said that, for the first time, the majority of registered Black voters no longer live in District 5. As a result, some voting precincts may be reassigned.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re talking about a couple thousand people out of 400,000 who may see different choices,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cIn terms of fairness, we are driven mainly by population. That\u2019s what we do. But we are sensitive to the history of the area. There\u2019s been discrimination. We used to be under the Justice Department’s pre-clearance. We continue operating as if we are under (DOJ) pre-clearance.\u201d<\/p>\n In the past, cities and states with a history of discrimination were required to obtain pre-clearance from the U.S. Department of Justice before changing voting maps. This system remained in place until 2013, when a U.S. Supreme Court decision on a case from Alabama invalidated a crucial part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, ruling it unconstitutional.<\/p>\n Tampa\u2019s population now stands at 415,373, which must be divided evenly among four districts. The planning commission is holding a series of public meetings to gather community input before finalizing new maps.<\/p>\n \u201cThe final arbiter is the planning commission of Hillsborough,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cThey are the ones who make the decision. It\u2019s not a popularity contest.\u201d<\/p>\n NAACP Hillsborough Branch President Yvette Lewis said the changes could significantly impact District 5\u2019s political influence.<\/p>\n \u201cGrowth is good, but it can be harmful to the people who already live there,\u201d Lewis said.<\/p>\n She fears new boundaries could dilute the district\u2019s voting power. The NAACP has hosted community forums to encourage residents to stay involved.<\/p>\n \u201cFor them to get involved, because literally your life is depending on it,\u201d Lewis said.<\/p>\n Former Tampa City Councilman and longtime resident Thomas Scott said regardless of how the maps are drawn, community engagement remains critical.<\/p>\n \u201cDistrict 5 is key to the whole growth of the city of Tampa,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Residents are encouraged to attend upcoming public meetings, including the next session scheduled for Tuesday at 5 p.m. at the Hanna Avenue City Center.<\/p>\n Scheduled Meeting Dates<\/p>\n Open House \u2013 Tuesday, January 27, 5:00PM-8PM<\/p>\n Virtual Open House \u2013 Tuesday, February 10, from 12pm to 2pm (Please register to attend<\/a>) Second and Final Public Hearing \u2013 Monday, March 9, 2026 at 7:30PM (Action Expected!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 Tampa\u2019s redistricting process is officially underway, and some community leaders worry new boundaries could weaken…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":131993,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[274,2375,276,2287,115,772,99,135,137,136,278,835],"class_list":{"0":"post-131992","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tampa","8":"tag-app-top-stories","9":"tag-fadia-patterson","10":"tag-hillsborough-county","11":"tag-local-politics","12":"tag-news","13":"tag-on-air-ticker-article","14":"tag-politics","15":"tag-tampa","16":"tag-tampa-headlines","17":"tag-tampa-news","18":"tag-top-stories","19":"tag-vod"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=131992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131992\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=131992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=131992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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Redistricting occurs every four years and is overseen by the\u00a0Hillsborough County Planning Commission<\/a>.
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Manager of Strategic Planning Environmental & Research Yassert Gonzalez said that, for the first time, the majority of registered Black voters no longer live in District 5. As a result, some voting precincts may be reassigned.
\n
In the past, cities and states with a history of discrimination were required to obtain pre-clearance from the U.S. Department of Justice before changing voting maps. This system remained in place until 2013, when a U.S. Supreme Court decision on a case from Alabama invalidated a crucial part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, ruling it unconstitutional
\nTampa City Council<\/a><\/p>\n
\nVirtual Open House \u2013 Monday, February 23, from 12pm to 2pm (Please register to attend<\/a>)
\nFirst Public Hearing \u2013 Monday, February 9, 2026 at 7:30PM<\/p>\n