Washington, D.C. \u2013 In case you missed it, plaintiffs supported by the National Redistricting Foundation (NRF) submitted a demand for a jury trial in Equal Ground Education Fund v. Byrd, a legal challenge seeking to block Florida\u2019s newly enacted congressional gerrymander on the grounds that it violates the Fair Districts Amendment to the Florida Constitution.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe voters of Florida enshrined the Fair Districts Amendment in the Florida Constitution to hold lawmakers to account when they draw districts to improve their political fortunes rather than address the interests of their constituents,\u201d said Marina Jenkins, Executive Director of the National Redistricting Foundation (NRF). \u201cIt only makes sense that the voters of Florida should be the ones to evaluate whether their elected officials have abided by their constitutional obligation. Accordingly, we have invoked our right to a trial by jury to present the clear facts in this case directly to the people.\u201d<\/p>\n
ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND:<\/p>\n
In July 2025, public reports<\/a> indicated that the Trump Administration was pushing Governor DeSantis to enact a mid-decade gerrymander to create more seats for Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives. In January 2026, Governor DeSantis issued a proclamation<\/a> calling for a special session in the Florida Legislature to draw a new congressional map. Despite overwhelming public opposition<\/a> to mid-decade redistricting, in April 2026, the Florida Legislature passed a new congressional gerrymander, which Governor DeSantis signed into law in May 2026.<\/p>\n Immediately after the enactment of the new gerrymander, the NRF-supported plaintiffs filed<\/a> their lawsuit in state court, arguing that the map violates Article III, Section 20 of the Florida Constitution\u2014also known as the Fair Districts Amendment (FDA), which protects against partisan gerrymandering. Specifically, the FDA prohibits partisan intent in drawing congressional districts or a map as a whole and imposes standards to guard against gerrymandering, including a compactness requirement and a requirement to use existing political and geographical boundaries.\u00a0<\/p>\n The NRF-supported plaintiffs argue that Florida\u2019s new gerrymander violates the FDAs in several ways, including 1) by being drawn with partisan intent to favor the Republican Party and disfavor the Democratic Party, and with the intent to disfavor Democratic incumbents, 2) by failing to meet the compactness requirement in several congressional districts, and 3) by failing to utilize or respect existing political and geographic boundaries in numerous congressional districts.\u00a0<\/p>\n In May, a preliminary injunction hearing was held before the Circuit Court of Leon County, after which the court denied the plaintiffs\u2019 request for a preliminary injunction<\/a> to block the new gerrymander for the 2026 midterm elections pending further litigation. Now, as the case heads to trial, the NRF-supported plaintiffs have demanded that a jury of Floridians weigh in on the facts of this case.<\/p>\n