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Black Voting District Eliminated in Florida Redistricting

Black Voting District Eliminated in Florida Redistricting

Black Voting District Eliminated in Florida Redistricting \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Florida’s Supreme Court upheld a Republican-drawn congressional map eliminating a majority-Black district. The ruling states reinstating the district would be unconstitutional racial gerrymandering. Critics argue the decision weakens Black voting power in north Florida.

Quick Looks

  • Florida’s Supreme Court upheld the state’s current congressional map.
  • The ruling supports the elimination of a majority-Black district in north Florida.
  • The decision was influenced by equal protection concerns over race-based districting.
  • The current map gives Republicans a 20-8 congressional advantage.
  • The formerly Black-represented district is now divided among three Republicans.
  • DeSantis called the ruling a constitutional affirmation of his plan.
  • Civil rights advocates say the ruling weakens Black voter representation.
  • Plaintiffs failed to present a viable alternative map to the court.
  • Justice Labarga dissented, arguing the case deserved further review.
  • The ruling solidifies district lines for the 2026 midterms and beyond.

Deep Look

The Florida Supreme Court delivered a significant ruling on Thursday, upholding the state’s current congressional redistricting map and rejecting a high-profile legal challenge centered on the elimination of a once-prominent, majority-Black district in north Florida. The court’s 6-1 decision affirms the redistricting plan championed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, reinforcing the GOP’s congressional advantage in the state for the foreseeable future.

At the heart of the case was the removal of a district that had previously connected Black communities across a 200-mile span, from Jacksonville to west of Tallahassee. This district, which was most recently represented by former Democratic Congressman Al Lawson, was dismantled in the current map. Its territory has now been split among three Republican-held districts, drastically diluting the political influence of Black voters in the region.

In the majority opinion authored by Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz — a DeSantis appointee — the court ruled that restoring the district would constitute “impermissible racial gerrymandering” and violate the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. “The record leaves no doubt that such a district would be race-predominant,” Muñiz wrote. “The record also gives us no reasonable basis to think that further litigation would uncover a potentially viable remedy.”

This decision effectively cements Florida’s current congressional district structure for the 2026 midterm elections and likely beyond. The map, which favors Republicans with a 20-8 edge over Democrats, had already been upheld by a panel of three federal judges earlier this year.

Governor DeSantis, who has aggressively reshaped the state’s political and judicial landscape, celebrated the ruling. “This was always the constitutionally correct map — and now both the federal courts and the FL Supreme Court have upheld it,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The ruling was met with swift criticism from civil rights groups and redistricting advocates. The National Redistricting Foundation, a plaintiff in the case, called the decision “alarming” and accused the court of failing in its duty to uphold equal representation. “The court is abandoning the most basic role of the judiciary: to provide justice for the people,” said Marina Jenkins, the organization’s executive director.

Historically, earlier versions of Florida’s redistricting plans attempted to preserve the Black voting power in the north Florida district. However, those efforts were vetoed by DeSantis, who instead promoted a new map that excluded the district entirely. Critics argue that this move was a strategic effort to consolidate Republican power at the expense of minority representation.

The court’s decision hinged, in part, on the plaintiffs’ failure to present a concrete, alternative redistricting plan. The justices noted that merely identifying flaws in the enacted plan does not meet the legal standard required to overturn it. “It is not enough in the redistricting context for challengers to identify a flaw in an enacted districting plan and demand that the court send the Legislature back to the drawing board,” the ruling stated.

Justice Jorge Labarga, the lone dissenter, expressed deep concern over the ruling’s implications. He argued that the case should have been returned to a lower court, allowing plaintiffs another opportunity to propose an alternative that might restore fair representation. “By foreclosing further litigation, the majority’s decision now allows to remain in place a congressional redistricting plan that is unconstitutional under the Florida Constitution,” Labarga wrote.

This ruling adds to Florida’s growing list of legal and political flashpoints related to race, representation, and partisan power. With the state’s judicial bench increasingly shaped by DeSantis appointments, critics warn that court decisions may now more frequently align with the governor’s conservative agenda, including policies around voting rights, education, and free speech.

The elimination of the north Florida Black district marks a broader national trend in which minority voting power is increasingly challenged in redistricting efforts. Civil rights groups are expected to continue exploring federal legal avenues, though the Supreme Court’s ruling now severely limits state-level options.

As the 2026 midterm elections approach, the Republican advantage in Florida appears all but locked in—at least under the current judicial and political landscape. The impact on Black voters, especially in historically Democratic-leaning districts, remains at the center of the controversy.

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