By Karyn Edison, Vice Chair, Lee County Democratic Party
The recent redistricting maps for Congress, just months before major elections, create confusion for voters and disrupt ongoing campaigns. A coincidence? Not likely!
Instead of staying with our current maps, the Florida Supreme Court opted to implement the new rigged maps and announced: any challenge to the new Congressional map’s legality must wait until after the 2026 election cycle because there simply isn’t enough time.
Republicans ignored that over 60% of Florida voters approved the Fair Districts Amendment specifically to prevent maps from being drawn to favor one political party over another, and Judges ignored the State Constitution. Vote them out.
Redistricting does not change where voters cast their ballots. It changes which congressional candidates appear on those ballots to represent them in Washington. Show them that it doesn’t matter which Democrat is on the ballot. You will vote for the Party that upholds its Constitution. You will vote for the Party that stands against voter suppression in any form.
If the Republicans claim that redistricting was necessary to account for population changes were true, other offices would have been redistricted to reflect the population shifts; yet, the new maps DO NOT change districts for school boards. They DO NOT change districts for county commissions. They DO NOT change districts for state representatives. They DO NOT change districts for the state senate.
Trump told GOP Governors to redistrict and find more congressional seats. Republicans bent the knee to the President instead of to the will of the people, then lied to the public, saying they needed to redistrict due to shifting populations when they had no updated data, no recent census. Notice, there was no need to redraw a single district for the Florida Senate or the Florida House of Representatives, only US Congress. Call them out on their lies and replace them with Democrats who use accurate data and work for the people to make their decisions.
According to the Lee County Supervisor of Elections, approximately 105,000 Lee County voters have been moved into different congressional districts. Some of the most significant changes affect Fort Myers, Gateway, North Fort Myers, and Lehigh Acres, which have been shifted from Congressional District 19 into Congressional District 17, or 17 to 19. Taxpayers will bear the costs of implementing the new maps, mailing new voter cards, updating election materials, and ongoing litigation challenging the districts. What happened to the Florida Department of Government Efficiency?
More than 100,000 Lee County residents will vote in different congressional districts than they expected just a few months ago. This August 18th, know if you are voting between Victor Arias and Howard Sapp in District 19 or Matthew Montavon and Allen Spence in District 17. Vote for the Democrat that rises from the August primaries in numbers so big that rigged maps won’t remove our Party from Florida. Make the rigged maps backfire on Republicans. With vote-by-mail ballots going out in July and the August 18 primary approaching, now is the time to:
- Check your registration.
- Sign up for Vote by Mail if eligible
- Verify your voting district.
- Review your updated voter information card.
- Make a plan to vote. Participation remains the most effective way to ensure your voice is heard.
- Contact your elected officials and demand fair elections.
- Most importantly, vote in every election—from local races to statewide contests.
Most importantly, vote in every election—from local races to statewide contests.