Florida’s Congressional Map Illegally Hurt Black Voters, Judge Rules
Written by Black Hot Fire Network on September 3, 2023
Background: The new map divided one district into four, each with a much smaller Black population.
At issue in the ruling was an area previously mapped as House District 5, which stretched from Jacksonville to Tallahassee along Florida’s northern border with Georgia.
The district, whose voting population was about 46 percent Black, had elected Al Lawson, a Black Democrat, in the 2016, 2018 and 2020 elections. Its voting patterns were racially polarized, with Black residents mostly voting for Democrats and white residents mostly voting for Republicans.
