On the first day of Black History Month, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis asked the Florida Supreme Court if a Black congressman’s district was unconstitutional. Democratic U.S. Rep. Al Lawson responded that the governor is race baiting to build political points with his base.
The north Florida district runs from Jacksonville to Gadsden County. The Republican-dominated Senate recently approved a map that largely keeps it intact, and the Republican-dominated House also has proposed maps that do the same. The Supreme Court last decade also approved the map as constitutional.
But now DeSantis is questioning whether the district meets the state and U.S. constitutions. The state requires that districts be compact, contiguous and not drawn to benefit or hurt a political party or candidate.
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