Florida House explores congressional redistricting as Senate waits for Governor’s guidance

The House Select Committee on Congressional Redistricting is beginning to consider what a new mid-decade map might look like.

Chair Mike Redondo called Thursday’s meeting an educational “listening and learning” session, in which committee members would be educated on how redistricting works. He noted that committee members don’t know when that decision will come or what it may bring.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has called for a Special Session in 2026 to focus on redistricting as the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule in Louisiana v. Callais early next year. That case could overturn prohibitions against racial gerrymandering and invalidate districts drawn to protect minority access.

Because of DeSantis’ Special Session push, Senate President Ben Albritton says he and his Senate colleagues will wait to begin the redistricting process. But Redondo bucked the Governor’s desire to wait, given the timing of elections.

“Given the fact that we are less than a year away from the election, not to mention the fact that the candidate qualifying period for federal offices in late April, it would be irresponsible to delay the creation and passage of a new map, especially until after Session. It would also be irresponsible to any who are called to civil service. And most importantly, it would be irresponsible to the citizens of Florida.”

Redondo, who was the only committee member to speak Thursday, elicited laughter from the crowd in the room when he said the process was divorced from politics, in light of partisan processes in California favoring Democrats and Texas for Republicans.

“I’m not naïve to the fact that there is much public discourse around mid-decade redistricting. Let me be very clear: Our work as a committee and as a legislative body is not directed by the work of other states or partisan gamesmanship,” he said.

The new map, should it be devised, is expected to make Florida’s congressional delegation even more Republican-leaning by way of considering what districts could have race as a determining factor.

Republicans hold a 20-8 majority in Florida’s congressional delegation. To put that supermajority in perspective, there are a little more than 1.4 million more Republicans than Democrats in a state with nearly 13.5 million registered voters.

A new map could push the GOP advantage further.

Potential Democratic targets include Florida’s 9th Congressional District in Orlando, represented currently by Darren Soto, and Florida’s 14th Congressional District in Tampa, represented by Kathy Castor.

Several South Florida seats could also be in flux.

These include Florida’s 20th Congressional District, where Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick serves, and Florida’s 22nd, 23rd and 24th Congressional Districts, represented by Lois Frankel, Jared Moskowitz and Frederica Wilson, respectively.