TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — In open defiance of a state constitution that explicitly bans partisan gerrymandering but in obedience to President Donald Trump, who demanded precisely that, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis drew a red-and-blue congressional map that would give Republicans four more House seats and unveiled it Monday to Fox News.
“Our new map for 2026 makes good on my promise to conduct mid-decade redistricting, and it more fairly represents the makeup of Florida today,” DeSantis told the network — more than an hour before transmitting the map to Florida lawmakers.
Whether it would actually deliver 24 of Florida’s 28 congressional seats to Republicans if it is approved during this week’s special legislative session, though, is another matter, particularly in light of Trump’s terrible polling and Democrats’ recent success in special elections, including the state House district for Trump’s Palm Beach country club home.
One top Florida Republican, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said DeSantis’ map could even result in a so-called “dummymander” that helps Democrats gain seats above the eight they currently hold.
“Wide range from 22-6 Republican down to scenarios of maybe 18-10 or 17-11,” he said, adding that the DeSantis map assumes best-case scenarios for Republicans and ignores how Latino voters have been turned off by Trump’s aggressive deportation policy. “That 24-4 is based on numbers from huge red turnout years with no real Democrat turnout operations. And that 24-4 factors Hispanic vote that went Trump and won’t go Republican again.”
