Republicans warn DeSantis’s Florida redistricting push ‘fraught with peril’

Florida Republicans are barreling ahead with a high-stakes redistricting session as the party looks to offset Democrats’ new maps in Virginia.  

State lawmakers in the Sunshine State are set to convene next week in what is widely seen as the GOP’s last chance to redraw congressional maps before the November midterms.  

The effort, however, has some Republicans warning Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to tread lightly, pointing to recent Democratic wins across the states as well as the Florida Constitution’s clear anti-gerrymandering language. They warn the push could pose more risk than reward — arguing that changing the maps could ultimately backfire on the party. 

“I don’t feel great about it,” a GOP consultant with a close relationship to DeSantis and the legislature told The Hill when asked about the redistricting session.

In recent months, DeSantis has voiced support for redrawing the state’s maps amid the nationwide redistricting battle, which President Trump ignited in Texas last year.

“No matter what else happens, that is going to have to be addressed,” DeSantis said last December, referring to a pending decision from the Supreme Court that could change the landmark Voting Rights Act. 

He’s argued that Florida should act before the high court weighs in on the case.

The lawsuit, involving Louisiana’s congressional maps, regards how much race can factor into redistricting plans, and the court appeared inclined to limit the practice during October oral arguments.

The governor also cited the state’s population growth since 2020, arguing that a reapportionment would more accurately characterize the shift.

“Our population has changed so much in the last four or five years. We need to get apportioned properly and people deserve equal representation,” DeSantis said in January, when he announced the special session.

Yet, when lawmakers convene this upcoming Tuesday, only 2020 data will be available to use to redraw the map.

Proposed congressional lines haven’t been........

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