The epic struggle for the control of Florida’s congressional map comes to center stage in a Tallahassee courtroom on Monday, complete with intertwining plot lines, side battles and, like any ancient drama, the quest for power — getting it and keeping it.
The 2012 congressional map drawn by the Republican-controlled Legislature is being challenged by a coalition of Democratic-leaning groups and seven individuals led by the League of Women Voters — referred to as the “League of Women Vipers” in emails from Republican political consultants.
But this is no fantasy tale. Experts say it is likely to be one of the most precedent-setting trials in state history as the court takes on a new role as the extra eyes on the redistricting process because of the Fair Districts rules etched into the Florida Constitution by voters in 2010.
For the first time, the rules prohibit lawmakers from drawing maps to benefit incumbents or political parties, and the new districts must adhere to geographic and political boundaries. The court will decide if the Republicans in power will hold onto the political boundaries for the rest of the decade, or be forced to draw a new one that could favor more Democrats.
“Florida voters said to the Legislature: you get to keep the pen, but we’re going to have the court looking over your shoulder,’’ said Justin Levitt, a redistricting expert at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, who maintains the website, All About Redistricting.
“The court didn’t have that role before the constitutional amendments, and part of the trial coming up is going to be how vigorously they take that responsibility.”
The court fight has already been intense as skirmishes emerged over whether legislators can be put under oath to discuss the maps, and whether the secret emails of their political operatives can be made part of the record.
The Florida Supreme Court made history in December with its landmark ruling that legislators can be deposed in the case, while the bitter fight over the secret documents is still brewing.
At stake is the 2012 congressional map that gave Florida two new seats and resulted in Republicans winning 17 of the state’s 27 districts, while Democrats saw a net gain of three districts.
The challengers say that the map should be thrown out and redrawn by the court, specifically four districts — those held by Democratic U.S. Rep.’s Corrine Brown of Jacksonville and Kathy Castor of Tampa, and Republican U.S. Rep.’s Dan Webster of Orlando and David Jolly of Pinellas County.
The coalition claims legislators not only violated the new redistricting rules, they hired a team of political consultants to coordinate with legislative staff “to conduct a separate redistricting process that was not only apart from the public process — but actually perverted the public process itself.”
Legislators say they carefully abided by the rules, conducted months of public hearings around the state and, according to Senate President Don Gaetz, established “the most interactive, inclusive redistricting process in the state history.”
Legislators are asking the court to reject the lawsuit and pay their attorneys fees.
