U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown and other black leaders in central Florida had asked last week to intervene in a federal lawsuit that they opposed.
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The League of Women Voters and Common Cause arguments before the court resulted in Florida’s Supreme Court, on July 9, ruling 5-2, that the congressional voting districts set by the Republican-controlled legislature in 2012 violated the state constitution, Article III: “districts shall not be drawn with the intent of denying or abridging the equal opportunity of racial or language minorities…” as well as the provisions of the Fair District Amendment passed in 2010. And while staff members say they took care to stick closely to the court’s decision when drawing a “base map” for the Legislature to consider, some lawmakers were already considering changes after a lengthy hearing Tuesday.
“It’s not about me”, Brown said Thursday while announcing the legal challenge.
Lawmakers started a special session Monday to deal with the congressional map, one of two such sessions they will hold this year. That’s in response to findings by Circuit Judge Terry Lewis and the Supreme Court, which said the Republican legislative leadership conducted the last remapping with a secrecy Vladimir Putin might admire.
That could bring an end to Webster’s political career in Florida, which spans three decades and includes a stint as Florida House speaker.
Webster would not say if he would seek re-election if legislators approve the map drawn up by legislative staff. You want to draw any other district? In directing the redrawing of eight districts across the state, the court’s 5-2 ruling specifically said to run the North Florida minority-access district from Jacksonville to Chattahoochee.
“Most respectfully, I believe the Supreme Court has gone far beyond what they should in requiring that these lines be drawn to the satisfaction of Democratic political operatives”, said Sen. Lee said his plan to bring more of eastern Hillsborough county into one district so Hillsborough has a better shot at electing two members to Congress. The term “gerrymandering” was given to the practice after Eldridge Gerry, governor of Massachusetts in 1812, became famous for his redrawing the state voting districts for political gain.
“We’re giving it our best try to put Sarasota County back together”, Detert said. She said Rooney’s 17th District has rural characteristics that are more akin to southeast Hillsborough than Venice and North Port, which would remain with the rest of Sarasota County under her amended map.
“Today, I filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking relief against the continued use of any congressional redistricting plan that dilutes the voting strength of African Americans”, Brown said in a statement to the media.
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Brown told a few stories about the history of structural racism in Florida, such as one about how “Jackie Robinson couldn’t live on Sanford” and “if he had stayed in Sanford, they would have killed him”, a reference to the town’s sundown laws. Under the proposed base map, most of coastal Palm Beach County would shift into a district represented by Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton.
