In a one-page decision, the Florida Supreme Court last week declined to consider opponents’ arguments challenging the legality of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ congressional redistricting map, meaning the map will likely be used in this year’s elections.
The League of Women Voters of Florida, Black Voters Matter Capacity Building Institute and other groups had called on the high court to weigh in on the issue after an appeals court overturned an injunction against the congressional map imposed by a circuit judge.
“Here petitioners ask this court to intervene in the First District Court of Appeal’s ongoing consideration of an appeal of an order imposing a temporary injunction,” the state Supreme Court said in a 4-1 decision. “At this time, this court does not have jurisdiction over that matter. And it is speculative whether the First District’s eventual decision will provide an appropriate basis for this court’s exercise of discretionary review – meaning we cannot say that it is likely that there is any jurisdiction to protect.”
Chief Justice Charles Canady and Alan Lawson recused themselves from the case for unstated reasons.
Opponents of the congressional redistricting map have focused on how it would have dissolved Congressional District 5, a majority-Black district in northern Florida. Reducing the number of majority-minority districts in the state violates the Fair Districts amendments in the state constitution, which bar any diminishment of the representation of racial or language minorities, according to the opponents’ original complaint.
The high court’s decision indicated that the court majority was simply not willing to take the case away from the First District Court of Appeal, according to the league’s president, Cecile Scoon.
“"It means that the Florida Supreme Court wants the appellate court to review everything first,” Scoon told the Florida Record. “They want a complete record."
The chance of resolving the arguments raised by opponents about Congressional District 5, which is currently represented by Rep. Al Lawson, in time for preparations for the 2022 elections to proceed is not probable, she said.
“It is possible First DCA could move expeditiously and set a hearing and get something changed and done possibly before the deadline for getting ballots out,” Scoon said. “But it’s not very likely at this time.”
In his dissent, Justice Jorge Labarga indicated that the high court would eventually have to take up the merits of the redistricting case once the appeals court makes a full ruling.
“Given this court’s history of considering congressional redistricting cases, I cannot forecast that we will lack jurisdiction to review the district court’s merits decision,” Labarga said. “At stake here is the mandate of 62.9% of Florida voters who voted in 2010 for one of what are commonly known as the Fair Districts amendments to the Florida Constitution – by any measure of comparison, 62.9% of the vote is an overwhelming margin.”