Florida approves DeSantis-backed congressional maps that dismantle Black lawmaker’s seat

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Republican majorities in the House on Thursday passed congressional maps favored by Gov. Ron DeSantis over a vocal protest from House Democrats, who interrupted the legislative debate for nearly an hour over opposition to the redistricting proposal.

The newly approved maps cut in half the number of seats designed to allow Black voters to select a candidate of their own choosing.

The House passed the DeSantis-drawn plan 68-38 along party lines as chants of “what do we do when Black voters are under attack, stand up, fight back,” chants rang loudly through the chamber.

The GOP-led Florida Senate approved the maps along party lines on Wednesday. The maps now go to DeSantis for his signature.

The sit-in started just before noon after state Rep. Yvonne Hayes Hinson, a Black Democrat from Gainesville, ran out of speaking time as she was arguing against the DeSantis-favored maps, which Republican majorities agreed to pass during a three-day special session. Hinson was cut off but kept speaking out against the maps, which prompted other House Democrats to vocally join her and House Speaker Chris Sprowls (R- Palm Harbor) to call the chamber into informal recess.

House Democrats remained on the floor singing and praying while also demanding that previously considered congressional maps that don’t give Republicans as much of an advantage be brought back and voted on instead of the DeSantis proposal, which eliminated Black-performing seats in the Orlando area and across large swaths of North Florida.

“Today, we stood for freedom, democracy, and protecting everyone’s right to represent so that no matter what we look like or where we come from, we all have the chance to flourish and thrive,” state Rep. Angela Nixon, a Black representative from Jacksonville told POLITICO via text message from the House floor. “As if over 20 years of single-party rule wasn’t enough, Republican leaders are willing to lie, cheat, and steal to maintain their stranglehold of power on the state of Florida.”

She said the protesting Democrats planned to remain on the House floor until removed by security, but that was not needed after Sprowls reconvened session and GOP lawmakers quickly passed the redistricting bill and two separate bills over chaos and chants on the floor.

During the sit in, the House Sergeant's office closed public viewing galleries, including removing a handful of reporters, about 40 minutes into the sit in. They did not indicate whether at that time they intended on removing members participating in the demonstration, but wanted to close the gallery because the House was technically not in session.

Sprowls did not meet with reporters after the meeting, as he often does. In a statement after the vote, he said that "after offering multiple opportunities to debate the bills in an orderly way, we carried on and completed our Constitutional duty to pass a Congressional map."

An official from DeSantis’ office also declined to comment.

Several Republican legislators sharply criticized their Democratic colleagues for the protest, with legislators such as state Rep. Spencer Roach (R-North Fort Myers) calling it “shameful” and saying on Twitter that “House Democrats are staging an insurrection.” Rep. Randy Fine, a Brevard County Republican, tweeted out “I hope the insurrection on the House Floor is dealt with appropriately. #LockThemUp.”

Black Democratic legislators, who contended there has been a steady stream of legislation aimed at them the last two years, pushed back against the comparison to the Jan. 6^th riots at the U.S. Capitol, saying they had a right to be in the Florida House and that they didn’t break windows or storm through any doors.

“This is what democracy looks like, this is how we fought for civil rights” said Rep. Yvonne Hinson (D-Gainesville). “This is the same way John Lewis fought for the voting rights act. This what we do when have nothing else that we know to do.”

The sit-in started after the Florida-dominated Legislature was poised to hand DeSantis a significant victory on Thursday, sending to the governor a new congressional map that would dramatically boost the GOP advantage in the nation’s third largest state.

The map is expected to draw a near-immediate court challenge from Democratic-aligned groups that contend the proposal violates federal and state law because it dismantles and diminishes two seats currently held by Black Democrats. And the final bill even includes $1 million in spending to pay for that fight. But it’s not clear if that legal battle could be resolved before June, when candidates must qualify for the ballot.

The map was drawn completely by DeSantis’ staff, something Democrats repeatedly noted during debate, as they argued the Legislature was bending its knee to the governor. During debate, Democrats ripped into the map and said it harms Black voters and represented an unprecedented intrusion into the once-in-a-decade redistricting process by the governor.

“He’s making the Florida Legislature to do his dirty work and its adversely affects his Black constituents and I will not go down in history as just another pawn,” said state Rep. Kamia Brown (D-Ocoee).

Republicans — while acknowledging that the map was based on a legal interpretation being advanced by DeSantis’ legal staff — pushed back and insisted that the map was constitutional.

“We are not mindless automatons, we don’t do this because we are bullied, we do this because we think we’re right,” said state Rep. Randy Fine, a Brevard County Republican.

Florida gained one congressional seat in 2022 due to population growth, for a total of 28. Republicans currently hold a 16-11 edge, and the map that was initially approved by the Legislature last month would have increased the GOP advantage by two seats.

But DeSantis vetoed the legislation, contending that it was unconstitutional because that map would have preserved a Jacksonville-area district in which a Black candidate was likely to get elected.

The map approved by the Legislature dismantles the North Florida seat now held by Rep. Al Lawson (D-Fla.), a Black Democrat and would potentially lead to a flip of the seat in the Tampa Bay area now held by Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.), who is not seeking a new term because he’s running for governor. The Central Florida district held by retiring Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) would also become a GOP-friendly district.

“Once again, DeSantis is showing Florida voters that he is governing the state as a dictator," Lawson said Thursday in a statement. "DeSantis bullied the Florida Legislature into approving his Republican-leaning congressional map during special session. It is alarming that state legislators cannot fulfill their constitutional duties without political meddling."