DeSantis Signs New Congressional Map, Setting Up Legal Battle Over Florida's Political Lines

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Florida's newly redrawn congressional map into law, a sweeping political realignment that could cost the state's Democratic congressional delegation half its members — and legal experts widely expect it to face an immediate court challenge.

The stakes for Treasure Coast voters are direct. Florida's congressional district lines extend through Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties, meaning the redrawn boundaries will determine which candidates appear on local ballots in 2026 and which party's priorities shape federal representation for the region.

The new map, drafted by the Governor's Office over roughly two weeks ahead of a special legislative session, produces a dramatic shift in partisan geography. Under the prior map, Florida sent 20 Republicans and eight Democrats to the U.S. House. The new lines draw just four districts where a majority of voters chose Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, compared to 24 districts carried by Donald Trump — a potential net gain of four Republican seats nationally, public records show.

DeSantis has defended the map as drawn in a "race-neutral" manner. The governor's office framed this posture as anticipating a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that ultimately weakened the Voting Rights Act — a ruling handed down while the Florida House and Senate were still debating the measure on the floor.

Critics have focused their sharpest objections on the treatment of Hispanic voters. Florida's 9th Congressional District, which opponents argue retains Voting Rights Act protection, was carved into five separate districts under the new map. By contrast, two Black-majority congressional districts — Florida's 20th and 24th — were preserved with Black voters constituting a plurality of the voting-age population in each.

Four Democratic incumbents — U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor, Jared Moskowitz, Darren Soto, and Debbie Wasserman Schultz — now find themselves in districts that lean Republican based on 2024 presidential results, according to a review of the map's partisan data. The new lines have already triggered candidate scrambling across the state to claim footholds in redrawn districts.

Four Republican members of Florida's congressional delegation — U.S. Reps. Vern Buchanan, Byron Donalds, Neal Dunn, and Daniel Webster — have announced they will not seek re-election, compounding the uncertainty. Their open seats' lines have also shifted under the new map.

The map takes effect immediately. Legal challenges, broadly anticipated given the Voting Rights Act questions raised by the Hispanic district carve-up, would move through federal court — with any injunction potentially affecting which map governs the 2026 primary cycle. Officials said

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