Fight to restore Black voters’ strength could dismantle Florida’s Fair Districts Amendment

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A coalition of voting rights groups is pointing to a voter-approved amendment to argue Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis violated the state constitution when he dismantled a Black congressional district, but if they lose the case, the Fair Districts Amendment itself could also be tossed out.

The groups, which include Black Voters Matter and the League of Women Voters, asked the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday to rule DeSantis violated the constitution because his map diminished Black voting power in a north Florida district.

But the court raised the possibility that if it sides with the state and concludes that race can’t be the primary motivation in drawing a map, part or all of the 2010 Fair Districts Amendment could be thrown out.

“It just seems like it’s inevitably heading down the path to we’re going to have to just sort of decide can FDA work?” said Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz. “Will the whole FDA have to go?”

In 2010, Florida voters approved the Fair Districts Amendment prohibiting political districts from being drawn to favor a political party or incumbent. It also states that districts can’t be drawn to diminish the ability of minorities to choose their representatives and should be compact and contiguous.

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