Lawyers trying to stop congressional redistricting in Florida decided to withdraw their motion on Monday, which means it’s back to the drawing board for U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown, D-Fla.
Just a few days ago, Brown said she intended to file lawsuit in federal court over the redistricting, which she says violates federal law. But Brown’s attempts were short-lived after lawyers in the case she was attempting to join decided to file a motion to dismiss Monday.
Lawyers filed the motion to dismiss the same day state lawmakers returned to Tallahassee to hammer out new maps for many of Florida’s congressional districts, Brown’s district being one of the impacted.
The state Legislature released a set of base maps last week, setting the stage for a series of impactful changes to many of Florida’s congressional districts.
Shortly thereafter, Brown held a press conference in Orlando where she repeatedly expressed concerns the new maps would be a huge problem for minority voters.
“The newly configured maps clearly will bring about minority vote dilution and hamper the ability of the state's minority residents to elect a candidate of choice,” Brown said.
Brown also said the opportunity to have hearings on the districts would have been helpful, especially for minorities.
“Certainly, the mandate given to the Florida state Legislature to convene a special session did not contain a requirement to hold hearings statewide, which would have allowed Florida voters to voice their concerns and priorities regarding their preferences for federal representation,” she explained. “Beyond a doubt, it is particularly important for African-American and Latino communities to be heard, whose representation and voting power will be severely impacted by redistricting.”
As the base maps currently look, Brown’s district will drastically change if it goes through.
Her district currently covers North Florida to the central part of the state, taking in parts of Alachua, Clay, Duval, Lake, Marion, Orange, Putnam, Seminole and Volusia counties, making it a very secure seat for Democrats. But the seat in the base map is far less secure, heading west from Brown’s Jacksonville base, taking in all of Baker, Gadsden, Hamilton and Madison counties, most of Jefferson and Leon counties and almost half of Duval County.
Data consultant Matthew Isbell said Brown didn’t necessarily have to worry about losing her seat. "She should be fine, she should be completely fine," said Isbell.
But as it currently stands, it appears Brown is going to have to start from the beginning if she wants to pursue any legal action in federal court.
The 12-day special session began Monday at 3 p.m.
Reach Tampa-based reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
