![\"Florida](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/MIA_104FriedAbortion03NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"Florida")
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Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried, to the left in white, says she is \u201cdisappointed\u201d in Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz\u2019s \u201crefusal to engage in meaningful dialogue about her decision\u201d to campaign in Florida\u2019s 20th congressional district.<\/p>\n
Pedro Portal<\/p>\n
pportal@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried is the latest in a chorus of voices criticizing U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the unfolding backlash to her decision to seek reelection in a Black plurality district after Republicans redrew Florida\u2019s congressional map.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am disappointed by the congresswoman\u2019s refusal to engage in meaningful dialogue about her decision, especially after our democratic ecosystem coordinated so closely to stop Republican redistricting,\u201d Fried told the Miami Herald in a statement Wednesday, marking her first public comments on the situation.<\/p>\n
She added that the party\u2019s bylaws require her to remain neutral in Democratic primary races, but said it \u201cdoes not require silence about our values. We will keep fighting for the maps, the seats, and the process that reflect every Black Floridian\u2019s voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wasserman Schultz, a Democrat whose own district was split into five last month by the Florida Legislature, qualified Tuesday in the race for Florida\u2019s 20th district, which was initially created to ensure Black voters\u2019 political representation. The district was targeted by Gov. Ron DeSantis<\/a> in light of a Supreme Court ruling changing how states could interpret the federal Voting Rights Act.<\/p>\n Her decision<\/a> came despite condemnation<\/a> from a group of Florida Democratic National Committee members and pleading from the Democratic Black Caucus of Florida to run in the newly drawn, Republican-leaning district where she lives. U.S. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has also twice declined to endorse her, even though she\u2019s part of his leadership team.<\/p>\n Fried\u2019s statement to the Herald comes amid warnings from a growing chorus of political leaders that Wasserman Schultz\u2019s decision \u2014 and the state party\u2019s silence about it \u2014 could have ripple effects across the ballot in November.<\/p>\n \u201cThe silence hurts. Debbie running hurts. The reaction of some so-called allies to tell us we ought to be mad at DeSantis and not Debbie hurts,\u201d Florida DNC member Sean Shaw told the Herald. \u201cAnd that hurt is going to have electoral consequences, unfortunately.\u201d<\/p>\n Shaw said frustration with the situation would be particularly acute among Black voters who already felt the party was taking their votes for granted without showing up for them in kind.<\/p>\n \u201cAny bridge can be rebuilt, but it\u2019s burning,\u201d Shaw said. \u201cWe all notice it and we all see it, and we can all hear the silence \u2014 when this party, our party\u2019s electoral success is built on the backs of Black people.\u201d<\/p>\n In a statement, Wasserman Schultz thanked \u201call the strong public support I have received from voters and community leaders\u201d across the district and nodded to her belief that she \u201ccan most effectively represent this whole community.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs always, I\u2019m not taking any support for granted,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat voters are sharing is that they know me and know how effective I am in Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n Behind the scenes talks<\/p>\n Former Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who resigned the seat in April rather than face a congressional ethics inquiry, said that she\u2019s concerned Black voters will register as no-party affiliated or are \u201cnot going to come out and vote in general\u201d if they don\u2019t see the party fighting for them.<\/p>\n \u201cNo one has commented on what Debbie\u2019s saying,\u201d Cherfilus-McCormick, who\u2019s also running in the 20th District, said. \u201cThey\u2019re just being silent, pretending it\u2019s not happening, and that\u2019s the part where the entire community is feeling alienated.\u201d<\/p>\n Fried issued her statement to the Herald in response to questions about frustrations with the party\u2019s silence on Wasserman Schultz\u2019s run.<\/p>\n Fried had been working behind the scenes in recent days to facilitate a dialogue between Black political leaders in Florida and Wasserman Schultz\u2019s campaign, but those efforts fell apart after the congresswoman\u2019s campaign refused their invitation, according to the party.<\/p>\n Wasserman Schultz\u2019s campaign did not respond directly to questions about that proposed meeting. She said in a statement, \u201cThere\u2019s a reason DeSantis and Trump targeted one of Broward\u2019s most tenacious fighters. They know I\u2019ll never back down from taking on their cruel MAGA agenda.\u201d<\/p>\n Elijah Manley, who qualified Wednesday to run in the district and has been lobbying other Black candidates to consolidate behind him<\/a> to beat Wasserman Schultz, praised Fried\u2019s behind-the-scenes efforts. But he said that more white elected officials in South Florida should have been clear they wouldn\u2019t support Wasserman-Schultz\u2019s run.<\/p>\n \u201cShe has been a great ambassador. I actually applaud Nikki Fried for being part of this conversation and listening. To me, there are a lot of officials who have remained silent,\u201d Manley said, adding that at the end of the day \u201cthe harm that is going to happen to this party is because of Debbie Wasserman Schultz.\u201d<\/p>\n Former Senate and House Democratic Leader Chris Smith said the party had been navigating a complicated landscape in responding to Wasserman Schultz\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n \u201cThis was a decision made by a congresswoman and, you know, the chips will fall where they fall,\u201d he said. \u201cBut as for the party, I would just get afraid of the dangerous precedent it would set if the party was to step in and tell anybody you can\u2019t run for this seat or you can\u2019t do that.\u201d<\/p>\n Widespread backlash<\/p>\n The controversy over Wasserman Schultz comes as states across the South have drawn out Black-majority seats, using the Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana v. Callais as a green light to drop the historical interpretation of the federal Voting Rights Act that required states to draw districts to ensure minority voters have the equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice as white voters.<\/p>\n As a result, the Congressional Black Caucus could lose up to 30% of its membership over the next two election cycles, according to an analysis<\/a> by Fair Fight Action and Black Voters Matter.<\/p>\n If Wasserman Schultz wins, it would be the first time in 30 years that the district has not had Black congressional leadership.<\/p>\n The 20th District \u201cremains one of the clearest examples of why Black political representation still matters in Florida today. This district was not handed to us. It was fought for,\u201d the Democratic Black Caucus of Florida wrote in a statement last week.<\/p>\n They asked Wasserman Schultz to run in the 22nd District, where it\u2019s unlikely a non-incumbent Democrat could raise enough funds and name recognition to win.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not about political convenience. This is about political responsibility,\u201d the caucus wrote.<\/p>\n Caucus President Armando Grundy-Gomes said Tuesday that the party\u2019s not-yet-public response in recent days had been \u201cconfusing,\u201d but that \u201cthis is about Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Nobody\u2019s held a gun to her head to run.\u201d<\/p>\n Miami Herald staff writer Raisa Habersham contributed to this report.<\/p>\n