Florida Congressional Map Adding 4 GOP Seats Approved
USA – A new Florida congressional map that adds 4 GOP-leaning House seats was on Wednesday approved by the state’s Legislature, handing a major win to both Governor Ron DeSantis and President Donald Trump.
The new map will likely trigger a legal battle that could take place in both state and federal courts, according to local media reports.
Florida’s Republican ministers pushed through the redistricting map submitted by DeSantis just two days earlier, even as they were still processing the state Supreme Court’s rulings issued Wednesday.
The Senate briefly paused to examine the decision, with several members reading it on their laptops.
Despite some dissent from a small group of GOP senators, the map ultimately passed largely along party lines, with an 83-28 vote in favor.
Democrats argued it was unlawful, saying it violated Florida‘s voter-approved anti-gerrymandering rules.
However, some Republicans said they were convinced by legal arguments from DeSantis’s team claiming those standards no longer applied.
“I don’t think we should do gerrymandering on the basis of political partisanship, and I don’t think there’s evidence this map does this,” state Sen. Don Gaetz defended the map.
“You are destroying democracy with this vote,” said state Rep. Fentrice Driskell, the House Democratic leader, during floor debate.
