Rep. Corrine Brown files federal lawsuit against redistricting decision

According to the complaint, they claim their rights are being violated “because if they exercise their First Amendment right to communicate with their legislators or the legislature as a whole about the legislative and congressional redistricting process, they risk being deemed to have “infected” any adopted redistricting plans”.

“Moreover, the reason why African Americans live in the areas of Congressional District 5 in which they do in the first place is a direct result of historical redlining, clearly exemplified by living patterns both here in the state of Florida and easily visible in other states as well”. Her district is being pushed to the north, meaning the district represented by Republican Gus Bilirakis, is also being shifted to the north, into Pasco County. “What matters is that you have somebody that represents you at the table”, she said.

Under a proposed map unveiled Wednesday, the district would instead stretch from Jacksonville to Gadsden County, west of Tallahassee. “As a people, African Americans have fought too hard to get to where we are now, and we certainly are not taking any steps backward”.

The Florida Supreme Court ruled July 9 that the districts drawn by state lawmakers did not follow the principles of a Florida Constitutional Amendment passed by voters in 2010 that districts can’t be drawn to benefit incumbents or political parties. “The federal courts drew the district based on communities of interest”, Brown said.

Legal experts, however, do not expect Brown’s federal lawsuit to hold up implementation of the new map for 2016, if the plan is ultimately approved by the state legislature and signed off on by a state court.

Matthew Isibell, a Tallahassee-based data consultant who works with Democrats, said his initial analysis of the map shows two seats now held by Republicans, U.S. Reps. We have three African-American (representatives).

We agree, noting that Buchanan would most likely continue to win elections in the new district.

Still, the last Senate president and House speaker promised transparency and delivered an unconstitutional map.

Grant also spoke at Brown’s press conference, saying she had delivered for his town, the oldest historically-black, incorporated town in Florida, while previous members of Congress had ignored it.

But the Florida Supreme Court has ordered the Legislature to recast a number of seats and yesterday, base maps were released. Nevertheless, we want to make sure you can participate in the upcoming session either in person or through our redistricting websites. The courts have raised questions about a closed-door meeting between the heads of the Senate and House redistricting process in 2012 to make final decisions about the shape of the congressional map. “But we’re not going out that way”.

The map was revealed hours after a pair of Republican county chairmen filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to have the Fair District amendments struck down on the grounds that they infringe on the right to free speech.

That proposed map, drafted by legislative staff members, essentially copied a proposal from voting-rights organizations that sued to overturn the congressional districts approved by the Legislature in 2012.

But Steele said the legal action is just a last-ditch effort to extend the inevitable redistricting process.