DeSantis: ‘Appropriate' to pursue redistricting in Florida
The governor's comment came after he scored a win last week when the Florida Supreme Court ruled upheld a congressional map that blocked a challenge to the elimination of the majority-Black congressional district in the north of the state that previously was represented by former Rep. Al Lawson (D). The area that comprised the former congressional district is now divided among three Republican lawmakers.
'Just last week the Florida Supreme Court upheld the map that all of the naysayers were saying was somehow defective,' DeSantis told reporters at a press conference in Manatee County.
'I think if you look at that Florida Supreme Court analysis, there may be more defects that need to be remedied apart from what we've already done. I also think the way the population has shifted around Florida just since the Census was done in 2020, I think the state was malapportioned. So I do think it would be appropriate to do a redistricting here in the mid decade,' he said.
DeSantis went on to say he believed that his state got a 'raw deal' in the Census when Florida only gained one congressional district, arguing that the state should have garnered at least two seats due to population growth.
The governor said he relayed his concerns to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick after he was sworn in earlier this year.
'They said they were going to redo the count in time for 2026,' the governor said. 'They would have to do that relatively soon because you need time to draw maps and you need time to get that done.'
Florida has seen an uptick in population growth following the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. A number of Democratic-held congressional seats could be impacted if redistricting were to take place, including those held in South Florida by Reps. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-Fla.), Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) and Lois Frankel (D-Fla.). Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) in the Tampa area and Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.) outside of Orlando have also been floated as possible targets.
Republicans and Democrats in the states have been engaged in a tit-for-tat of sorts over redistricting in recent weeks. Texas Republicans are moving ahead with redrawing district lines, while speculation has mounted that Republicans in other states like Florida could follow suit. Democrats from California to New Jersey in turn have ramped up calls to redraw their maps in an effort to blunt the GOP's efforts.
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