Florida Supreme Court Orders Redrawing of Some 'Constitutionally Invalid' Congressional Districts

By Reuters On 7/9/15 at 12:06 PM EDT

07_09_Florida_01 — Florida districts were found to be divided along political party lines and ordered to be redrawn by the The Florida Supreme Court on July 9, 2015. Stephenie Schukraft

U.S. Congressional Districts Gerrymandering

The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the redrawing of some of the state's U.S. congressional districts before the 2016 elections.

The state's high court found the legislature's redistricting plan was "constitutionally invalid," the latest decision in a long-running legal battle over gerrymandering in the state.

The court said two of the state's 27 congressional districts, currently occupied by Democrat Corrine Brown of Jacksonville and Republican Daniel Webster in the Orlando area, need to be redrawn, as well as adjacent districts.

These districts have been the subject of litigation. A circuit court judge ruled last year that the legislature's 2012 maps "made a mockery" of anti-gerrymandering provisions in the state's constitution.

"The court has made it abundantly clear that partisan gerrymandering will not be tolerated," said attorney David King, representing a group of plaintiffs led by the League of Women Voters of Florida and Common Cause.

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