Florida's Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to place a hold on a recently approved Republican congressional map, ruling the court lacked jurisdiction to act while the dispute remains before a lower appeals court. The 6-1 decision means the Republican-drawn lines are all but certain to be used in this fall's congressional elections.
The legal challenge mounted by Democrats argues the map violates a state constitutional prohibition against drawing district boundaries to benefit one political party over another - a practice commonly referred to as partisan gerrymandering. Plaintiffs had asked the state high court to pause the new map and direct state officials to revert to the prior district map until the litigation is resolved.
With the filing deadline for congressional candidates scheduled for Friday, and primary elections set for August, the court's decision leaves little time for any change before ballots are finalized. The new map was approved by Florida Republicans in late April and is designed to flip as many as four Democratic-held seats, a move that would help the party protect a narrow majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Republicans currently hold 20 of Florida's 28 U.S. House seats. Because the challenge remains under consideration at the appeals level, the Supreme Court majority said it did not have the authority to intervene at this stage.
The recent dispute in Florida is part of a broader pattern of mid-decade redistricting activity. Last summer, President Donald Trump initiated an atypical redistricting push by urging Texas Republicans to adopt a new, more favorable map. Since then, both Republican- and Democratic-led states have sought to redraw districts with strategic advantage in mind.
The issue gained additional momentum after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling that significantly weakened the Voting Rights Act protections for districts with substantial racial minority populations. Several Republican-led Southern states moved quickly to take advantage of that ruling by eliminating majority or near-majority Black districts, which have tended to support Democratic candidates.
Advocacy groups challenging the Florida map criticized the Supreme Court's refusal to halt the lines. Genesis Robinson, executive director of Equal Ground, which filed the lawsuit, said the high court's action was "not only an assault on democracy, but an abdication of its duty to the people of Florida."
Those recent redistricting efforts have given Republicans an advantage overall in the current redistricting cycle, the parties' jockeying notwithstanding. However, the article notes that Democrats may still capture control of the U.S. House, citing President Trump's weak approval ratings as a factor that could influence electoral outcomes.
Procedural context
- The Supreme Court's 6-1 vote declined to intervene because the case remains active before a lower appeals court.
- Plaintiffs sought a temporary return to the previous map pending resolution of the partisan gerrymandering claim under the state constitution.