Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis unveils GOP redistricting plan to grab 4 seats

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on Apr 27, 2026

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Monday unveiled an aggressive Republican redistricting plan aimed at flipping four seats from Democrats in the upcoming midterm congressional elections.

With President Trump’s GOP allies clinging to a narrow majority, DeSantis is hoping to help Republicans hold on to the House of Representatives by restoring a Republican edge in the state-by-state gerrymandering war that Trump unleashed.

The controversial effort, which the GOP-dominated state legislature will consider starting Tuesday, comes just a week after Virginia voters approved a pro-Democratic gerrymander map that would flip four Republican-held seats in that state.

The map seeks to transform the state’s already pro-Republican 20-8 delegation into a 20-4 edge. It eliminates two Democratic-held seats in south Florida and one each in the Tampa and Orlando area, where Democratic Rep. Darren Soto serves as the first Puerto Rican congressman from the state.

The political power play is not without serious risk for Republicans, especially as Democrats have dramatically outperformed expectations across the nation and particularly in the Sunshine State.

The new map creates new GOP-leaning districts by splitting up Democratic voters into neighboring Republican-held districts, effectively increasing the potential political peril they could face, particularly in a blue-leaning political environment with Trump’s approval ratings plumbing historic lows.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said Democrats would sue in both state and federal courts to block the changes, claiming that the redistricting effort “blatantly violates” a Florida constitutional amendment that bars partisan gerrymandering.

Calling the map a “DeSantis Dummymander” that would fail to move the political needle, Jeffries said Florida should be forced to seek approval from Sunshine State voters to rejigger the map.

“Take it to the voters, Ron,” Jeffries said.

DeSantis has brushed off warnings from Jeffries, and even joked that he would bankroll a campaign swing/fishing trip to the Sunshine State to spotlight the Democratic leader’s involvement in the races.

Regardless of the outcome, Florida is widely expected to be the last shoe to drop in the redistricting fight.

Trump launched the unprecedented mid-decade battle as a surprise secret weapon aimed at holding onto the House, where the GOP now holds a six-seat edge.

But the gambit has backfired and it looks like a dead heat at best after Virginia joined several states on both sides of the aisle to redraw district maps.

Pundits and betting markets now consider Democrats are overwhelmingly favored to retake the House and install Jeffries as the first Black Speaker.

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