On a recent evening, community members waited in the pews of the New Generation Missionary Baptist Church in Opa-locka — but not for a regularly scheduled service. They were there for an emergency meeting about Florida's congressional redistricting and its effects on Black representation.
The concerns stem from the decision last month by Florida’s Republican-controlled Legislature, led by Gov. Ron DeSantis, to redraw a new voting map that favors Republicans over Democrats. Republicans already hold 20 of Florida’s 28 U.S. House seats. The new voting districts could improve the GOP’s chances to win four additional seats in the November elections.
DeSantis told Fox News that the map “more fairly represents the makeup of Florida today."
The early redistricting, four years ahead of the usual Census-driven schedule, came as President Donald Trump pushed states to create additional Republican House seats ahead of a midterm election that appears set to give Democrats key gains.
At "What’s At Stake," an event planned by Faith in Florida, a network of over 800 congregations in the state, dozens of activists, pastors and community members voiced their outrage over the redrawn districts.
“I just believe they’ve gone too far,” LaVon Bracy, 77, said, holding up the new map from the church podium. “There’s something wrong with this picture."
Her daughter, state Sen. LaVon Bracy Davis, D-Orlando, raised similar concerns last month in Tallahassee during debate over the redistricting legislation.
“One person [DeSantis] determined the political future of millions without any public input. That should concern every member of this body," she said during the special session.
South Florida has seen some of the most significant changes to its congressional districts. Community members at the church argued that this will directly affect the voting power of Black communities in the region.
“Florida now has a red map with little blue spots,” said the Rev. Rhonda Walker Thomas, co-pastor of New Generation Missionary Baptist Church and executive director of Faith in Florida. "They’re beginning to gut Black representation to silence us, and they're doing a phenomenal job.”
Thomas now lives in what she calls a "little blue spot" — Congressional District 20. She was especially concerned after seeing her newly redrawn district.
CD-20 has historically been considered majority-minority, with almost half of its residents being Black. It is one of the few districts that favor a Democratic candidate. The district lies in Broward and includes Coconut Creek, Deerfield Beach, Lauderdale Lakes, Lauderhill, North Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Plantation, Sunrise, Tamarac and Wilton Manors.
The newly redrawn district turned into a political firestorm after regional Black community leaders asked longtime U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz to not run for the seat. She has since announced she is running because her previous seat — CD-25 — was redrawn to favor a Republican candidate. The district includes parts of Broward, Palm, and Miami-Dade counties.
Despite pressure to run elsewhere, Wasserman Schultz has is viewed as the frontrunner — potentially breaking the historic precedent of Black representation. She will face several Black candidates in the Aug. 18 primary.
READ MORE: Judge rules Florida's new congressional map will remain intact ahead of midterms
“We fought hard, and we’re still fighting hard to keep Black representation in place," Thomas told WLRN. “We need to continue the fight for that seat so that it represents Black folk.”
Near CD-20 is CD-24, where New Generation Missionary Church is located. This district has been redrawn to include more of the surrounding Black communities — effectively packing Democratic-leaning voters in to that district.
This was called "packing and cracking" in a lawsuit filed against the map by the Equal Ground Education Fund.
"They are diluting our vote, by putting us all in one area, then putting more Republicans in other [districts]," Bracy said.
“What [will] happen if we aren’t going to have any representation when we go to Congress?” Bracy told WLRN, “Will someone who cares or knows nothing about the area represent it?”
Cost of living, education concerns
But various speakers underlined the importance of voting even in the face of diluted representation for Black communities, in order to have a chance of tackling other urgent issues like cost of living and public education funding.
“It seems like they’re trying to erase the middle class,” Miami Gardens resident, Cynthia Handy, 60, told WLRN. “This affects our schools, our kids. Redistricting is going to affect a lot of neighborhoods, and unfortunately, that means Black and lower-income communities.”
LaWanda Toomer, 50, told WLRN she's concerned about school funding. Florida teachers make nearly $18,000 less than the national average, according to a recent report.
“As an educator, I came out today because we are deeply affected by pay, housing, and food costs, and how we are treated as far as funding for public education,” she said.
Toomer, like other educators at the event, worried that funding was being shifted away from public schools in order to prioritize school choice for parents.
“My mom works in education, and because of budget cuts, she does not have a summer job this year,” said Trinity Williams, 17. “The loss of that income has created financial uncertainty for our family. We have to think more carefully about expenses and how we’ll manage.”
When Williams said she plans to register to vote when she turns 18, the sanctuary erupted with applause and “Amens”.
“As a people, we have a voice,” Bracy said to the cheering community members. “And the only way we can change what they’re doing is for us to vote.”
Thomas joined Bracy under the dim church lights.
“[It’s not just] what is happening in Florida. They are redoing lines in Alabama, Tennessee, all over the South. We are seeing this kind of map being drawn,” Thomas said.
“The South is important, and that’s why we’re being attacked.”
