Florida GOP, DeSantis may follow Texas’s redistricting lead

(The Hill) — Florida Republicans are increasingly pushing to redraw the state’s congressional lines following a similar move by the Texas GOP.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Wednesday he is “very seriously” looking at asking the state Legislature to redraw the state’s congressional map, arguing the 2020 census is flawed.

Rep. Jimmy Patronis (R-Fla.) came out in favor of redistricting in a post on social platform X, writing that “Texas can do it, the Free State of Florida can do it 10X better.”

Florida Republicans say they were already headed in this direction following a state Supreme Court decision that upheld a congressional map supported by DeSantis and state Republicans.

But the plan is gaining even more traction in the wake of Texas Republicans’ unveiling of a new congressional map.

“It’s picking up steam,” Florida GOP Chair Evan Power told The Hill. “We were probably heading there with the court decision, but Texas made it top news.” 

Florida has seen an uptick in population growth following the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

The state has also become solidly Republican over the past decade, with Republicans growing their representation in Congress and once-Democratic strongholds like Miami-Dade and Osceola counties flipping from blue to red. 

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, Jared Moskowitz and Lois Frankel. Rep. Kathy Castor (D) in the Tampa area and Rep. Darren Soto (D) outside of Orlando have also been floated as possible targets. 

Florida Republicans already hold a 20 to 8 advantage over Democrats in the congressional delegation. 

Republicans were boosted last month when the state’s Supreme Court ruled to uphold a congressional map that blocked a challenge to the elimination of a 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.

But DeSantis is not stopping there.

The governor has argued that Florida got a “raw deal” in the 2020 census when the state only gained one congressional seat. The governor said last month he had relayed his concerns to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick after he was sworn in earlier this year and that the Trump administration could be pursuing redoing the census.

Additionally, the governor said he believes Florida’s Fair District amendments, which a majority of voters approved of in 2010, could conflict with the U.S. Constitution. The amendments say that districts cannot be drawn in a way that hinders minorities voting for their choice of elected representatives. 

“There’s a lot of people who believe that the Fair District Amendments is unconstitutional, because what it does is, it mandates having race predominate,” DeSantis said this week. “Whereas, neutrality should really be the constitutional standard.” 

Patronis also said in his X post that he believes the Fair District Amendments are unconstitutional “because it violates freedom of speech AND elections are a states rights issue.”

“Time to add more conservatives to Congress, so we can better deliver on President Trump’s agenda, finally win the war against woke, cut government waste, and create an economy that moves our country into a new age of prosperity,” Patronis said. 

Republicans argue that DeSantis and the state’s Republicans could be setting an example for other red states to follow. 

“DeSantis here sees an opportunity to be a trailblazer for the Republican Party in this sense in that he could be setting up a pilot program that Texas and some of the other states can actually follow,” a Florida Republican strategist said. 

“Let’s not disillusion ourselves, if he pulls this off, he will be a fan favorite of one person who sits at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,” the strategist added, referring to Trump. 

So far, Republicans in the Florida state Legislature have remained publicly quiet about the prospect of pursuing redistricting. This year’s state legislative session was extended from 60 days to 105 days and saw tensions emerge between DeSantis and members of his own party. 

State Rep. Alex Andrade, a vocal Republican critic of DeSantis, said he has not spoken to his colleagues about redistricting. The state lawmaker noted he would support the effort only if the census was redone. 

“I get the partisan argument,” Andrade told The Hill. “I understand we could make hay right now and benefit Republicans but at some point do I care more about my party or the Constitution?”

“If the census were redone, I’d jump all over it,” he said. 

Florida Democrats warn that a move by DeSantis and the state’s Republicans would set a negative precedent.

“It would mean that the governor and the state legislative branch would completely capitulate under Donald Trump,” state House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell (D) said. “It’s not supposed to be that the president gets to act like a king and say ‘do this on my behalf.’” 

In a Facebook video posted by Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), Soto accused Republicans of wanting to cheat in the election.

“They want to pick their voters rather than voters picking their representatives,” he said. “You’ll see us do whatever we can in the courts to make sure that the Fair Districts Amendments are enforced.” 

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Madison Andrus dismissed the effort from Florida Republicans as “a bold-faced attempt to save their flailing midterm performance by rigging the game.” 

The effort comes as the nationwide redistricting war heats up and both parties seek to gain seats ahead of next year’s midterm elections. 

In addition to Republicans in Texas and potentially Florida taking a look at redistricting, Democrats in states like California and New Jersey are also exploring their options. 

“There’s an opportunity and if it better reflects the makeup of a state whether that’s Texas or Florida, or to Gavin Newsom’s point even California, then you should do it,” a national Republican strategist said. 

“These redistricting efforts, if they comply with the law and meet all of the various federal thresholds to get mapped through, if you do that and do it quickly, you’re going to increase the likelihood that the president and Republicans in Washington and going to be able to keep pushing things forward,” the strategist continued.