Voters sue DeSantis for ordering Florida legislature to pursue pro-GOP gerrymander

Florida voters have sued Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) over his unilateral effort to launch mid-decade redistricting in the state, arguing that the governor lacks the authority to issue orders to the state legislature.

In a proclamation last month, DeSantis called a special legislative session for this spring to redraw the state’s electoral maps. The move added Florida to the growing list of states in which Republicans are trying to use redistricting to give themselves an advantage in the upcoming midterm elections.

But in a new suit filed Thursday, voters* alleged that DeSantis and Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd (R), who joined the governor’s proclamation, have unconstitutionally encroached upon the powers of the state legislature by ordering it to redraw the state’s congressional maps.

“The Governor’s powers are defined by Florida’s Constitution—which does not confer unilateral authority to bind the Legislature into passing legislation,” the lawsuit reads.

The voters asked the Florida Supreme Court to declare DeSantis and Byrd’s proclamation nonbinding and unenforceable — at least until the legislature passes a reapportionment plan or formally triggers a reapportionment process. 

They also requested that the court order the governor and secretary of state to explain where they derived the authority to issue orders to the legislature.

*The Florida voters are represented by the Elias Law Group (ELG). ELG firm chair Marc Elias is the founder of Democracy Docket.