Two former congressional members are worried that efforts for mid-decade redistricting will take away fair representation.
This comes as Florida's legislature is scheduled to reconvene for a special session on Tuesday, focused on redrawing congressional maps.
Redistricting is normally done every 10 years to adjust for population changes following results from the U.S. Census. The next census is in 2030.
A national effort for mid-decade redistricting first started when Texas redrew its Congressional districts, with Republican state lawmakers hoping to shape political areas so the GOP could pick up more seats. President Donald Trump first urged that effort. California, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia have also moved parameters with the goal of helping one party or another.
READ MORE: PolitiFact FL: Is Florida's mid-decade redistricting plan 'illegal,' as some Democrats say?
According to PolitiFact, Gov. Ron DeSantis has given various reasons for the redistricting push in the Sunshine State. One is to regain a seat that he says Florida unfairly lost in the 2020 Census.
Another is the influx of residents to the state since the last census. PolitiFact reported that back in 2020, Republicans had fewer registered voters than Democrats, but now, they have nearly 1.5 million more.
The News Service of Florida also previously reported how DeSantis called the session in anticipation of a still-pending U.S. Supreme Court ruling from a Louisiana case. This could strike down part of the Voting Rights Act, which allows states to draw districts based on race. DeSantis believes that if the court does make that ruling, Florida would be required to redraw some of its district.
On "The Florida Roundup," former U.S. Reps. Carlos Curbelo and Stephanie Murphy are concerned that this redistricting effort will create systems where the "extremes have the loudest voices."
Curbelo is a Republican, and Murphy is a Democrat. They're both part of the bipartisan nonprofit organization Center Aisle Coalition.
Murphy argues that Florida has laws saying partisan gerrymandering is unconstitutional.
"It is creating a disadvantage and disenfranchising voters," Murphy told host Tom Hudson. "I think at a time when people are losing faith quickly in their government, that's the last thing we actually need."
Curbelo said he opposes all "extraordinary redistricting efforts."
"I think they're all toxic. I think they are all efforts to further polarize and divide the country," he said. "They are, if not a technical violation of the rules. Of course, the courts will decide that in each state, but they are certainly a violation of the spirit of our democracy, the way it's intended to work."
"It really takes away fair representation. What the outcome is that it amplifies the voices of the extremes, and the reality is that it doesn't reflect where the majority of Americans are."Former U.S. Representative Stephanie Murphy
Law professors told PolitiFact that mid-decade redistricting on its own would not be considered illegal, but doing it to intentionally benefit one political party would be.
Curbelo said legislators redrawing districts whenever they think it is convenient is in "bad faith" and "really confusing."
"People already have a tough time trying to figure out which district they live in and which candidates they have to pay attention to, and this will only make it more difficult," Curbelo said.
Murphy added that she's against all redistricting.
"It really takes away fair representation. What the outcome is that it amplifies the voices of the extremes, and the reality is that it doesn't reflect where the majority of Americans are," Murphy said. "I think you end up getting government that is less responsive to the majority of Americans' needs when you create systems in which the extremes have the loudest voices in Congress."
READ MORE: DeSantis pushes redistricting as Democratic wins shake GOP outlook
Murphy explained that when politicians are elected from a deep blue seat or a deep red seat, the safest thing to do when they come to the House or Senate floor is to vote on their party line.
Whereas if you come from a more divided district, Murphy said, you have to be thoughtful about how the issue impacts constituents.
"I'll never forget being a freshman in Congress and having been well-prepped rolling on to the House floor ready to cast my vote on the set of issues and having a more senior member from a partisan district ask me, 'What are we voting on?' I was like you don't need to know because you look and see where your party's voting.'"
Curbelo once described politics as the "art of what's possible." But when it comes to a mid-decade redistricting, he said this could erase the districts that are representative of where the country is.
"It means that the realm of what's possible becomes a lot smaller, and it becomes even more difficult to find compromises, to craft policies that most Americans can appreciate and that will benefit their quality of life," he said.
The Republican predicts the outcome would be more one-party legislative initiatives in Congress and people feeling excluded. He believes this is a "power grab" — no matter which party is doing it and that at the end of the day, everyone will lose.
This story was compiled from interviews conducted by Tom Hudson for "The Florida Roundup."
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