{"id":251955,"date":"2026-04-30T02:41:12","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T02:41:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/251955\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T02:41:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T02:41:12","slug":"florida-pols-groups-react-to-scotus-redistricting-ruling-passage-of-new-gop-map","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/251955\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida pols, groups react to SCOTUS redistricting ruling, passage of new GOP map"},"content":{"rendered":"

There was no shortage of reactions across Florida in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling<\/a>\u00a0that weakened a landmark Civil Rights-era law which previously increased minority representation in government.<\/p>\n

The 6-3 decision<\/a>, which found that race cannot be a primary factor in drawing districts, effectively bolstered a push by Gov. Ron DeSantis and his GOP allies to draw a new congressional map.<\/p>\n

Florida lawmakers approved<\/a> the new map hours later on Wednesday, aimed at giving Republicans up to four more seats<\/a> in the state\u2019s 28-member delegation. The Supreme Court ruling will hinder legal challenges against it.<\/p>\n

Before the ruling, maps could be challenged under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA<\/a>) if they diluted minority voting power, even without explicit racist intent.<\/p>\n

The Court interpreted Section 2 far more narrowly, essentially requiring proof of intentional discrimination.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In practice, it means lawmakers can now redraw districts in ways that reduce minority voting strength, which, based on analyses of DeSantis\u2019 map, could weaken Democratic representation in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

The ruling landed as President Donald Trump and national Republicans push to improve the GOP\u2019s position ahead of the Midterms, with redistricting emerging as a key battleground.<\/p>\n

Trump has encouraged a fresh round of map-drawing in Republican-led states, and places like Texas have been exploring or advancing<\/a> new congressional lines.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, legal and political fights<\/a> over maps continue in states such as Virginia, where a redistricting effort has been viewed as more favorable to Democrats.<\/p>\n

At least one group, Common Cause Florida<\/a>, said it\u2019s \u201cexploring legal challenges\u201d to the map, which it says is still illegal under the Florida Constitution.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cFlorida\u2019s mid-decade redistricting process has been partisan from start to finish, and that\u2019s illegal in Florida,\u201d Common Cause Florida Executive Director Amy Keith said in a statement.\u00a0\u201cFlorida voters banned partisan gerrymandering in the Constitution. That didn\u2019t change with today\u2019s Callais decision. The Governor and the legislature have gone against the law and against the will of the people. Common Cause will fight to defend voters\u2019 will to end partisan gerrymandering.\u201d<\/p>\n

As could be expected, there were plenty of other reactions from Florida political figures, organizations and others in The Process.<\/p>\n

Federal officials<\/p>\n

\u2014 President Donald Trump, asked after the Supreme Court ruling if he supported congressional redistricting for red states to improve GOP Midterm odds: \u201cI would. I mean, it depends. Some states don\u2019t need to redraw, and some do. \u2026 Yeah, I would say generally I would think that they would want to do it. Some were greatly helped and some you know didn\u2019t make much difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds: \u201cA major win<\/a> for the Constitution! Today\u2019s SCOTUS ruling confirms that race cannot be the \u2018predominant\u2019 factor in drawing congressional maps. By striking down the forced racial gerrymander, the Court is ensuring voters are seen as individuals, not just demographic groups. The Democrats do not care about black representation, they only care about Democrat representation. Exhibit A: Burgess Owens of Utah. Black man. Super Bowl Champion. Republican. Democrat interest groups in Utah swayed a state judge to implement new maps to get a Democrat in his congressional seat. Let\u2019s be clear, the Democrats use the VRA to protect Democrat power.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 U.S. Rep.\u00a0Maxwell Frost: \u201cToday the Florida Legislature passed a congressional map that violates Florida\u2019s Fair Districts Amendment and is designed to give House Republicans additional seats in the upcoming election.\u00a0For Governor DeSantis, this is about winning elections, not the census or complying with Florida\u2019s Fair Districts Amendment. Any redistricting plan should follow the law, and this map clearly violates both the letter and the intent of the law.\u00a0This map is clearly illegal, and even a packed court like Florida\u2019s will have to recognize that and ultimately strike it down.\u201d<\/p>\n

State officials<\/p>\n

\u2014 Senate Democratic Leader Lori Berman: \u201cThe map my Republican colleagues passed today is an illegal partisan gerrymander of Florida\u2019s congressional districts. Despite today\u2019s decision in\u00a0Callais, the arguments presented by the governor\u2019s office in defense of these maps have no basis in reality. Nothing in that decision invalidates any portion of the Florida Constitution, which I, my colleagues in the legislature, and the governor have all sworn an oath to defend. Passing this map, which was drafted in only two weeks and given to us with barely a day\u2019s notice, was a complete abdication of our responsibility as legislators and an insult to the voters that put us here. I\u2019d like to thank my colleagues from across the aisle that were brave enough to choose people over politics by opposing this map. Your willingness to put partisanship aside and do the right thing gives me a glimmer of hope in our increasingly cynical political world. I look forward to seeing these illegal maps challenged in court.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell: \u201cI am profoundly disappointed in the Supreme Court\u2019s decision to abandon decades of precedent and principle, effectively swinging open the doors to voter disenfranchisement. This decision is a betrayal of Black Americans who, after enduring centuries of discrimination, only secured the full right to vote a mere 60 years ago.\u00a0The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was born out of the sacrifice and hope of Americans determined to fulfill the promises of the 15th Amendment by eliminating barriers to the ballot box. And now the very tools that were put in place to protect representation are being twisted to diminish it. We should keep moving forward towards a more perfect union, not backwards towards repression. This failure is the exact result Donald Trump and Republican politicians wanted\u2014not what the people wanted. Nothing in this decision requires Florida to draw new maps. No matter what excuses the Governor wants to make, any attempt to redraw congressional districts right now is a direct response to the President\u2019s call to gerrymander districts to benefit Republicans. That partisanship and overreach is still illegal under Florida\u2019s constitution no matter how the U.S. Supreme Court changes the meaning of the Voting Rights Act.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Senate Democratic Leader-designate Shevrin Jones: \u201cThese illegal maps are a clear gerrymander drawn for purely partisan gain and to silence voters\u2019 voices. The Governor\u2019s staff acknowledged as much. At the end of the day, our communities deserve representation that puts PEOPLE first \u2014 not more political games and distractions from their very real affordability crisis impacting Floridians across the state. It\u2019s also not lost on me that this map was passed despite Republican opposition just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court undermined Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. For decades, the VRA has protected the right to vote for every American, and today\u2019s decision continues the targeted assault against our democracy. The dilution of voters\u2019 voices, especially voters of color, will undoubtedly have devastating long-term consequences. I refuse to sit back silently and stand with those fighting to protect our rights and fair and equal representation at every level.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 State Sen. Tina Scott Polsky: \u201cPolitical parties come and go. Majorities shift. The party that engineers the maps today may find itself on the other side of those maps tomorrow. But constitutional norms, once broken, are very hard to restore.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 State Sen. Darryl Rouson: \u201cProcedurally, we have not undertaken the full due diligence<\/a> of analyzing these maps to understand their impact; and I served on redistricting in 2011 and 2012 when we had 26 hearings around this state. \u2026 That has not taken place in this instance, I would argue. What we have instead is a map, that according to what we were told in Committee, was worked on for two weeks and finished over the weekend and delivered to us 24 hours before we vote on it in Committee.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 State Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith: \u201cThe Governor\u2019s office repeatedly claims they drew \u201crace-neutral\u201d maps \u2014 these are deliberate lies. Their rigged maps intentionally crack Central FL Hispanic voting power by splitting them into 4 separate districts. These maps are racist AND illegal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Local officials<\/p>\n

\u2014 Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings: At the time I was born in the South, the Voting Rights Act didn\u2019t exist. It took generations of people marching and fighting for the right to vote and against disenfranchisement to get it passed. The\u00a0Callais\u00a0decision renders the Voting Rights Act a dead letter, according to Justice (Elana) Kagan. The gutting of Section 2 of the VRA will not only have a pernicious effect on minority representation in the halls of Congress but will also eviscerate opportunities for Black and Latino voters to elect candidates that reflect their communities in municipalities and state legislatures. Gov. DeSantis is attempting to use this decision in his attempt to rig our congressional districts. However, Florida voters overwhelmingly supported the Fair Districts Amendments, which constitutionally proscribe lawmakers from diluting minority voting interests: \u2018districts shall not be drawn with the intent or result of denying or abridging the equal opportunity of racial or language minorities to participate in the political process or to diminish their ability to elect representatives of their choice; and districts shall consist of contiguous territory.\u2019 This language, in addition to the constitutional provisions banning partisan gerrymandering, is still in effect regardless of the Supreme Court\u2019s decision. I call upon our legislative and judicial bodies to follow the Florida Constitution and allow all of our communities to elect representatives of their choosing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other notables<\/p>\n

\u2014 Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried: \u201cFlorida Republicans just violated their oath to the Florida Constitution. They intentionally disregarded the will of the people who voted in 2010 to ensure our maps are FAIR and not drawn on partisanship. Help us kick their asses out of office.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power: \u201cFlorida got it right. Gov. Ron DeSantis and our Legislature have delivered congressional maps that reflect the continued growth of our state that are fair, and constitutional, ensuring Florida voters are represented accurately. This is responsible governance and we applaud Governor DeSantis for his leadership on this and the Legislature for moving forward and passing these new maps. The Republican Party of Florida praised state lawmakers for their work in advancing a congressional map that prioritizes fair representation and upholds the integrity of Florida\u2019s electoral process.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President\u00a0Heather Williams:\u00a0\u201cToday has been a dark day for democracy, especially in the South. Republicans know their losing agenda is raising prices that will cost them elections this November, which is why they\u2019re pulling out every stop to insulate themselves from facing accountability from voters. Between Florida Republicans\u2019 blatant power grab and the weakening of the Voting Rights Act, statehouse power has never mattered more. The DLCC is meeting this moment with the most ambitious strategy to date to flip majorities and break GOP supermajorities across the South \u2014 including Florida. 2026 will determine the landscape of redistricting power through the rest of the decade \u2014 our democracy depends on winning statehouse power.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Former state Senator and Florida Attorney General candidate Jos\u00e9 Javier Rodr\u00edguez: \u201cThey can\u2019t change how Floridians vote \u2014 so they\u2019re trying to change the map instead. While families face rising costs, Republicans are reshaping congressional districts to directly impact your vote. We deserve fair maps, fair elections, and leaders who put people over power.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Congressional candidate Phil Ehr: \u201cSCOTUS just delivered a body blow to the Voting Rights Act. No more using it to create fair majority-minority districts. DeSantis will use today\u2019s ruling to double down on his gerrymandered maps, suppress minority power, and cement minority rule. Our voting rights are eroding in real time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Congressional candidate Elijah Manley: \u201cThe Supreme Court took a sledgehammer to the Voting Rights Act today, eviscerating protections that allow black people and other minorities to elect candidates of our choice. This is a 21st-century Jim Crow.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Congressional candidate\u00a0Rudolph \u201cRudy\u201d Moise: \u201cWe are at a critical moment for our democracy. The Supreme Court\u2019s recent decision in the Louisiana redistricting case is a sobering reminder that the fight to protect Black and Brown voting power is far from over.\u00a0As a Haitian-American, a Black man, and a proud member of a community that has had to fight for every inch of political representation, I know that fair maps are not an abstract issue. They determine whether our communities have a real voice in Congress, in state government, and in the decisions that shape our daily lives.\u00a0For generations, majority-minority districts have helped correct a long history of exclusion, ensuring that Black, Hispanic, immigrant, and historically underrepresented communities have a meaningful opportunity to elect leaders who understand their realities and will fight for their priorities.\u00a0At a time when these protections face increasing challenges, we must remain vigilant. This moment calls for unity, action, and a renewed commitment to protecting the voices of Black and Brown communities at every level of government.\u00a0Our message is clear: Black and Brown voters deserve representation, protection, and power at the table.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Matt Isbell of MCI Maps: \u201cThe Callais decision is NOT what DeSantis wanted. He insisted the court would strike down the use of race entirely and hence invalidate Florida\u2019s own racial protections. That didn\u2019t happen. Means Florida\u2019s Fair Districts are still the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 All Voting is Local State Director Brad Ashwell: \u201cDeSantis\u2019s legacy will always be tied to the erosion of voting rights in Florida. The ridiculous creation of an election police force, the laws that attacked popular voting methods like voting by mail and early voting, and now mid-decade redistricting \u2014 all have been used to keep voters from the ballot box and control the results of our elections. With his latest actions, DeSantis has ignored his state\u2019s voters to instead cater to President Trump so their party can maintain control of Congress during the midterms. Despite what DeSantis and his cronies on the ground in Florida say, this redistricting push wasn\u2019t about political lines. This was about whether all voters \u2014 including Black, Brown, and those from other historically excluded communities \u2014 can have a chance at representation in a system that\u2019s supposed to serve everyone, and it was an opportunity those who voted for this new map failed to take.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 League of Women Voters President Jessica Lowe-Minor:\u00a0\u201cThe League of Women Voters of Florida is disappointed with the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais. However, it does not change the reality that, here in Florida, it is illegal to draw districts with the intent to favor or disfavor a political party. Despite the fig leaves that have been placed on mid-cycle redistricting, everyone can see that this is a partisan political power grab. The voters of Florida have repeatedly said they don\u2019t like partisan gerrymandering. It\u2019s really sad to see the voters\u2019 will being ignored by the Governor and a majority of the state Legislature. Floridians deserve better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 UnidosUS Florida Political Director\u00a0Jared Nordlund: \u201cThe congressional maps passed today by the Florida Legislature will diminish the political power of Floridians and erode fair representation for our communities in Congress. That is unacceptable, and it is unconstitutional.\u00a0In 2010, UnidosUS stood shoulder to shoulder with Floridians to pass the Fair Districts Amendments because we believed every voter \u2014 and every community \u2014 deserved a fair shot at representation,\u201d said Jared Nordlund, Florida State Director of UnidosUS. \u201cThese new maps betray that promise. They weaken voting power, they move our state backwards, and they are plainly unconstitutional. At a moment when families are drowning in a cost-of-living crisis and paying some of the highest gas prices in the country \u2014 a Florida-made problem \u2014 the Legislature should be focused on delivering real relief, not playing partisan games with the lines of democracy.\u00a0UnidosUS proudly helped lead the Fair Districts coalition in 2010 to enshrine in Florida\u2019s Constitution a clear promise: districts cannot be drawn to favor a political party or incumbent, and they must protect the ability of communities to elect representatives of their choice. The maps now moving through Tallahassee break that promise and silence the voices of the very voters the Fair Districts Amendments were designed to protect.\u00a0Floridians deserve a Legislature focused on lowering costs \u2014 not rigging maps. From gerrymandered redistricting that silences our voices to policies that make healthcare, food, housing, and gas increasingly unaffordable, it is clear these efforts seek to erode both the political and economic power of working families. UnidosUS will continue to stand with our coalition partners to defend fair representation, fight for economic justice, and demand that Florida\u2019s leaders get back to work on the issues that actually matter to the people they were elected to serve.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Equal Ground<\/a> Executive Director Genesis Robinson: \u201cThe Legislature\u2019s decision to pass these rigged congressional maps is a direct slap in the face to millions of Floridians who were counting on their elected leaders to follow the law and uphold the Constitution. Instead, they chose politics over people. This brazen power grab makes one thing clear, the loyalty of the legislators who voted for this gerrymandered map lies not with the voters they were elected to serve, but with Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis. Just yesterday, hundreds of Floridians showed up in Tallahassee. Thousands more called, emailed, and demanded fairness throughout this process. And yet, despite overwhelming public outcry, the Legislature pushed forward a map designed to hand Republicans control of 24 out of Florida\u2019s 28 congressional seats. That is not fairness. That is not democracy. That is manipulation. It is shameful the Legislature abdicated its constitutional responsibility by allowing Governor DeSantis to draw these maps himself. He wrote them, and now he has signed them into law. That is not how our system is supposed to work. What we saw today is a blatant violation of both the law and the trust of the people.We are calling on the courts to intervene and put a stop to this unconstitutional and undemocratic power grab. Floridians deserve fair maps. And we will not stop fighting until we get them.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There was no shortage of reactions across Florida in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling\u00a0that weakened…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":251956,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[445,409,51922,12665,28,30,29,41125,47277,11298,10351,412,4497,56181],"class_list":["post-251955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-byron-donalds","tag-donald-trump","tag-evan-power","tag-fentrice-driskell","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-gerrymandering","tag-lori-berman","tag-nikki-fried","tag-redistricting","tag-ron-desantis","tag-supreme-court","tag-voting-rights-act"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251955","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=251955"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251955\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/251956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=251955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=251955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=251955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}