Jean Robinson: Fight for Fair Districts continues

On Nov. 2, 2010, 63 percent of Florida voters said "yes" to Fair Districts amendments that put new state constitutional limits on the process legislators are permitted to use to draw congressional, state House and state Senate districts.

Tallahassee politicians had fought long and hard against the Fair Districts amendments, and their opposition to these new restrictions did not end in 2010. The new maps drawn by the Legislature and passed in January 2012 were deemed not to be in compliance with the Fair Districts amendments. So, the League of Women Voters of Florida, as part of the Fair Districts Coalition, filed a lawsuit to challenge the congressional map in a state trial court. But the Legislature prolonged the case and it did not conclude until it was too late to change the map for the 2012 elections.

This case was continued into the 2014 election cycle. In June 2014, the court agreed with the Fair Districts Coalition and the League of Women Voters that the congressional maps did not meet the standards mandated by the constitutional amendment. The Legislature was called into special session in August 2014 to redraw the maps. Documents were released exposing the extent to which consultants went to influence the redrawing of districts.

Revised legislative maps were accepted by the court. But the changes came too late for the redrawn plan to apply to the November 2014 elections. The League of Women Voters, along with other Fair Districts Coalition members, have challenged the redrawn maps, asking the Florida Supreme Court to review the lower court's ruling and revisit arguments about the validity of the entire redrawn map. Oral arguments will be heard on March 4.

The Legislature has spent over $6 million dollars in legal fees to fight against the redistricting process. It is now up to the Florida Supreme Court to decide if the Legislature followed the rules set forth in our constitution. The League of Women Voters will continue to work to ensure that voters have an equal voice despite the delaying tactics of our Legislature.

Jean Robinson is president of the Alachua County League of Women Voters.