Florida's new congressional map faces legal challenge over Fair Districts
Lawsuit challenges Florida's new congressional map for violating the Fair Districts Amendment constitutional protection.
Event / Politics
Florida Congressional Redistricting 2026
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis proposed a new congressional redistricting map that would increase the Republican delegation from 20 to 24 seats while reducing Democratic representation from 8 to 4, citing population growth since the 2020 Census. A special legislative session was called to consider the map, which faces expected legal challenges in Florida's Supreme Court.
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2026-08-18 to 2026-11-15 · UTC publication dates
Coverage begins 28 Apr, 00:08 UTC
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What happened
Florida becomes eighth state to enact new congressional map for 2026 elections
Florida is the eighth state to enact a new congressional map for the 2026 elections, following redistricting efforts in Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, California, Virginia, and Utah. The nationwide redistricting push was initiated in Texas last year at President Donald Trump's urging, with Republican legislatures in multiple states following suit to gain advantage in the 2026 midterm elections.
New map threatens Florida's Fair Districts Amendment constitutional protection
The new congressional map signed by DeSantis threatens to dismantle Florida's Fair Districts Amendment, a voter-approved constitutional provision adopted in 2010 that bans redistricting with intent to favor or disfavor a political party or incumbent. DeSantis has claimed the amendment violates the U.S. Constitution.
New Florida congressional map expected to create four Republican pickup opportunities
The new congressional map signed by DeSantis is designed to be favorable to Republicans and could create conditions for the GOP to gain four House seats in Florida. Republicans currently hold 20 of 28 House seats in Florida. Under the new map, Democratic representatives including Kathy Castor, Darren Soto, Jared Moskowitz, and Debbie Wasserman Schultz are expected to face more difficult paths to reelection. The map changes specific districts to make them more favorable to Republican candidates.
U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Voting Rights Act enables more aggressive state redistricting
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act weakened protections and freed up red states to gerrymander more aggressively. The ruling rejected a lower court's order for Louisiana to add a second majority-Black district, concluding that such rulings can only be issued with clear evidence of racial discrimination. This decision paved the way for red states to carve up Black-majority districts to undermine Democratic electoral prospects.
Lawsuit filed challenging Florida's new congressional map
The Equal Ground Education Fund and 18 individual plaintiffs filed a lawsuit on Monday challenging the new Florida congressional map, arguing that it violates Florida's Fair Districts Amendments which prohibit partisan gerrymandering. This legal challenge came immediately after the map was signed into law.
Gov. Ron DeSantis signs new Florida congressional map into law
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a new congressional redistricting map into law on Monday. The map was created by DeSantis's office and approved by the Republican-led legislature during a special session. DeSantis announced the signing on social media with the message 'Signed, Sealed, and Delivered,' accompanied by a photo of the new districts.
DeSantis cites population growth and census concerns as justification for redistricting
DeSantis argued that aggressive redistricting in Florida is warranted because Florida has experienced significant population growth and the Biden administration allegedly played games with the census, cheating the state of at least one additional House seat. DeSantis stated that the districts did not reflect Florida's current population distribution compared to four years prior.
DeSantis responds to Jeffries with invitation to campaign in Florida
During a news conference in Florida, DeSantis responded to Jeffries' warnings by inviting the House Minority Leader to campaign in the state on behalf of Democratic candidates. DeSantis said 'I will pay for you to come down to Florida to campaign. I'll put you up in the Florida governor's mansion. We will take you fishing,' suggesting confidence in Republican electoral prospects in the state.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries warns Florida Republicans against redistricting
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries warned DeSantis and Florida Republicans that attempting the redistricting would be ill-advised, saying 'If they go down the road of a DeSantis dummymander, the Florida Republicans are gonna find themselves in the same situation as Texas Republicans, who are on the run right now.' Jeffries predicted that if Florida proceeds with redistricting similar to Texas, Republicans would gain at most two or three seats rather than the planned five seats, and that Democrats would gain all five seats in California.
DeSantis argues map addresses racial gerrymandering in state constitution
In his proposal to lawmakers, DeSantis contends that the new map is necessary because the current congressional districts, drawn by his administration, use race as a factor in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. DeSantis argues that Florida's Fair Districts constitutional provisions, which require consideration of race when drawing political lines, are unconstitutional. His general counsel stated: 'Properly understood, the Fourteenth Amendment forbids the government from divvying up the citizenry based in whole or in part upon race.'
Florida redistricting map released to Fox News before state lawmakers review
The Florida congressional redistricting map was first released to Fox News in graphic form before being shared with state lawmakers who would vote on it. The map clearly outlined the political leaning of each proposed seat in red and blue colors, which could demonstrate partisan intent. Democratic state Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith criticized the process, stating that the fact the Governor shared the map with the media before sharing it with state senators voting on the proposal the next day showed the process was 'partisan and illegitimate.'
House Speaker Mike Johnson endorses Florida redistricting effort
House Speaker Mike Johnson expressed support for Florida's redistricting effort, stating 'Florida has the right and the intention to do it. And my view is that they should.' This endorsement contrasted with opposition from Democratic leadership.
DeSantis calls special legislative session to consider new congressional map
Governor DeSantis called a special session of the Florida Legislature to begin Tuesday to consider and vote on the newly proposed congressional redistricting map. The legislature holds overwhelming Republican majorities in both the state House and Senate, and the map is expected to pass. If approved by lawmakers, the map would then return to DeSantis for his signature and would apply to the 2026 midterm elections.
Florida redistricting would cancel out recent Democratic gains in Virginia
If implemented, Florida's new redistricting map would offset Democratic gains in Virginia, where voters approved a redistricting plan that could see Democrats pick up four House seats in that state. Florida would become the eighth state to redraw its congressional lines this election cycle, as President Donald Trump initiated a campaign to use redistricting to increase Republican majorities in the House.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis unveils new congressional redistricting map
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis released a proposed new congressional map for the state on Monday that would create four additional GOP-leaning seats, converting the current 20 Republican-8 Democratic delegation to a 24-4 Republican advantage. The map would eliminate four Democratic-leaning districts in central and southern Florida, affecting cities including Tampa, Orlando, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach. DeSantis cited Florida's population growth since the 2020 Census and claimed the state was undercounted by more than 760,000 people as justification for the mid-decade redistricting.
Florida redistricting expected to face legal challenge in state court
The new congressional map is expected to be challenged in the Florida Supreme Court, where DeSantis has appointed six of the current seven justices. However, even with a favorable court, Republicans in the state are uncertain whether the map will survive legal challenge given the state constitution's Fair Districts provisions prohibiting partisan intent in redistricting. Some Republican lawmakers estimate the map could pass only by a narrow 4-3 margin if upheld by the court.
Some Florida Republicans express concerns about aggressive redistricting strategy
Some Republican operatives and lawmakers in Florida have questioned the wisdom of the redistricting plan, expressing concern that creating four new GOP-leaning seats by narrowing margins in multiple districts could put Republican incumbents at risk during the expected difficult 2026 midterm election cycle. One veteran Florida Republican operative said the strategy could be 'chaos theory' motivated by potential 2028 presidential ambitions rather than sound electoral strategy.
Read the coverage
2 alternative perspectives
New Florida map creates four Republican pickup opportunities
Florida's redistricting map creates four potential Republican pickup opportunities for 2026.
DeSantis signs Florida's new congressional redistricting map into law
DeSantis signed Florida's new congressional map, making the state eighth to adopt one for 2026.
Florida redistricting map leaked to Fox News before legislative review
Redistricting map leaked to media before lawmakers' review; some Republicans question aggressive strategy.
National leaders clash over Florida's redistricting push
National Democratic and Republican leaders take opposing stances on Florida's redistricting proposal.
DeSantis unveils congressional redistricting map, calls special session
DeSantis proposes new Florida congressional map addressing alleged racial gerrymandering via special legislative session.