Two national voter advocacy groups have sued Florida over a Republican-friendly congressional map. The latest case marks at least the second legal challenge to the new cartography within a few hours of Gov. Ron DeSantis signing it.
The Campaign Legal Center and the UCLA Voting Rights Project, along with a group of Florida voters, are suing Secretary of State Cord Byrd to block implementation of the map.
“The Florida Legislature, at the behest of Governor DeSantis and President (Donald) Trump, is attempting to fast-track an illegal gerrymander for partisan gain, blatantly violating the state’s constitution,” said Simone Leeper, senior legal counsel for redistricting at Campaign Legal Center.
“In 2010, Floridians made it clear that voters should determine who represents them, and not the other way around. The Fair Districts Amendment plainly states that congressional and state legislative districts cannot ‘favor or disfavor’ any particular party. Instead of abiding by this law, the Legislature is defying the will of voters and backing a map that was crafted entirely with partisan intent. We stand ready to defeat this unconstitutional map to ensure that all Floridians can make their voices heard during the 2026 midterm election cycle.”
The lawsuit, filed Monday in Leon County circuit court, calls for courts to void the map and demand Florida lawmakers comply with the state constitution in any forthcoming redistricting effort.
“Florida voters made clear that congressional maps should not be drawn to entrench one political party’s power,” said Bernadette Reyes, senior staff attorney at the Voting Rights Project.
Reyes also challenged DeSantis’ logic that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling against a second majority minority U.S. House seat in Louisiana mandates a change in Florida congressional lines.
“The lawsuit is about enforcing that promise. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais does not erase Florida’s constitutional ban on partisan gerrymandering, and it does not give lawmakers permission to override the will of the voters.”
The suit is similar to one filed earlier Monday by the Equal Ground Education Fund against the map.
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