Note: This story was revised to correct a district number in a photo caption.
The revised congressional districts proposed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis would dramatically alter Polk County’s representation in Congress.
The map that DeSantis’ office submitted to Florida legislators on April 27 brings a new district into Polk while moving the districts of Rep. Laurel Lee, R-Tampa, and Rep. Daniel Webster, R-Clermont, outside of Polk.
The current map, revised after the 2020 U.S. Census in keeping with longtime custom, divides Polk County among four districts. District 9, held by Rep. Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee, covers a small section of eastern Polk.
District 11, Webster’s district, includes northern Polk County. A day after DeSantis unveiled the map, Webster announced that he would end his bid for a ninth term and retire.
District 15, Lee’s district, covers western Polk County, including much of Lakeland west of South Florida Avenue.
District 18, now held by Rep. Scott Franklin, R-Lakeland, encompasses most of eastern Lakeland and extends south to Collier County.
DeSantis, who is in his final term, has broadcast for months that he would call a special legislative session and ask lawmakers to approve redrawn congressional maps in anticipation of the midterm elections in the fall. Under Florida’s current map, Republicans hold 20 of Florida’s 28 seats in the U.S. House.
The map DeSantis unveiled is projected to give Republicans control of four more districts. Soto, a five-term representative, is one of the main targets of DeSantis’ redistricting push.
Franklin’s district would contract
Traditionally, the Florida Legislature creates new congressional district maps once a decade, after the U.S. Census produces new information about the state’s population distribution. All districts must contain equal numbers of residents — in this case, about 769,000.
DeSantis has argued that Florida needs to revise its congressional districts because he believes the state was undercounted in the 2020 Census and because the state has seen significant population growth since 2020. But he has not called for altering the district maps of the Florida Legislature.
Under the proposed map, Franklin’s district would become more compact, covering much of Polk County, including all of Lakeland, and a section of western Osceola County. District 18 currently extends southward to cover all or part of eight counties.
In response to an email from The Ledger, Melissa Kelly, Franklin’s chief of staff, wrote:
“Congress does not play a role in drawing congressional district lines in Florida. That responsibility rests with the state through its established redistricting process. Rep. Franklin’s priority is delivering strong, consistent results for the people he represents. He remains focused on fighting for Florida’s 18th Congressional District and ensuring constituents have a responsive, effective voice in Washington.”
District 9, Soto’s district, would shift to include a piece of southeast Polk County containing about 12,000 residents, according to material submitted to the Legislature by DeSantis’ office. District 9 would also cover all or part of Orange, Osceola, Indian River, Highlands, Okeechobee and Glades counties.
The added counties to the south are heavily Republican, whereas Soto’s current district is majority Democratic. Soto is believed to be the first candidate of Puerto Rican heritage elected to Congress from Florida, and Osceola County has a large Latino population.
Soto is one of two Democrats directly targeted by the new map, along with Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa. The revisions would convert four Democratic-held districts in southeast Florida into three, NBC News reported.
Soto posted April 27 on the platform X in response to DeSantis’ map.
“Gerrymander or Dummymander?” Soto wrote. “This map is an absolutely unlawful violation of the Florida Constitution. The Legislature should reject it. The courts should strike it down. That being said, there are 12+ seats that Democrats could still win under this map in this cycle.”
District 16 invades Polk
While the districts held by Lee and Webster would move out of Polk County, District 16 would expand northward to cover southwest Polk, a section with only about 14,000 residents. The district of Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Longboat Key, currently includes parts of Manatee, Hillsborough and Sarasota counties.
The redrawn district would contain parts of Sarasota, Manatee, Pinellas, DeSoto and Hardee counties. It would take in Bradenton and much of St. Petersburg.
Buchanan has indicated that he will not seek an 11th term. Before DeSantis revealed his proposed map, nine candidates had filed to run for the open seat in District 16. They include John Peters, a Republican from Lakeland.
District 11, represented by Webster, picked up part of Polk County with the 2022 redistricting. Likewise, District 15, Lee’s district, shifted to include part of Polk in the revisions following the 2020 Census.
The offices of Lee and Webster did not respond to requests for comment sent the morning of April 28.
Will Florida’s plan be constitutional?
Before his retirement announcement, Webster had said that he considers the redistricting plan a mistake.
“Don’t do it,” Webster said to Punchbowl News earlier this year. “I’ve said it from the beginning. I’ve been around enough reapportionments to know it’s a slippery slope.”
The governor’s push to change the congressional map comes amid an unprecedented national wave of redistricting. President Donald Trump has urged Republican-controlled states to redraw their maps in hopes of increasing the number of Republicans in the U.S. House.
Republicans now hold a 218-212 advantage, and the president’s party historically loses seats in midterm elections. Republican-led Texas was the first state to seek a new map, and Democratic-controlled California and Virginia responded by taking steps to revise their congressional districts.
California and Virginia held referendums, in which voters approved the proposals to draw new maps. Virginia’s redistricting plan will now be fought in court after a circuit judge blocked certification of the results.
Democrats have denounced DeSantis’ proposal as partisan gerrymandering. Florida voters in 2010 passed two constitutional amendments known as the Fair Districts Acts, which bar the Legislature from drawing districts intended to favor an incumbent or political party or to limit the impact of minority voters.
The amendments also require both congressional and legislative districts to be compact and contiguous and to heed geographic and political boundaries.
DeSantis submitted a legal memo to the Legislature with the map arguing that the provision on minority voters is void because of a Florida Supreme Court ruling. If the Legislature approves DeSantis’ map, legal challenges are almost certain to follow.
Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: DeSantis’ map targets Darren Soto, changes other Polk districts
Reporting by Gary White, Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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