Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a proclamation Wednesday calling a special session in April to redistrict Florida’s congressional map, just one month after the regular legislative session is scheduled to end.
Although the call is long awaited, coming months after DeSantis first hinted that he wanted a spring session to redraw Florida’s political lines, GOP House Speaker Danny Perez has pushed back on the governor’s plan to wait until after the regular session. And while lawmakers must abide by a governor’s special session call, they don’t have to pass any legislation.
The special session is set for April 20-24, weeks after the 2026 regular session ends on March 13.
“We are going to do it in the latter part of April, partially because there’s a Supreme Court decision that’s going to affect the validity of some of these districts nationwide, including some of the districts in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said during an unrelated press conference in Steinhatchee.
“I know there’s a lot of people that are excited in both the House and the Senate to be able to do it, so they’re gonna get their chance to do it. But, realistically, you can’t do it now — the Supreme Court hasn’t ruled,” he continued. “So, we’ve got to give some time for that.”
In addition, he floated the possibility of another special session to take on property taxes. There’s “some value” in doing a session specifically dedicated to slashing the tax on homestead properties, he said.
Waiting for SCOTUS
DeSantis referred to a highly anticipated ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in a voting rights case out of Louisiana. The high court, expected to rule later this year, could bar states from taking the racial makeup of districts’ populations into account when drawing congressional lines.
Traditionally, states redistrict every 10 years following new U.S. Census data revealing the ebbs and flows of regional populations.
But the conversation surrounding the highly unusual potential for mid-decade redistricting reached a fever pitch when President Donald Trump, hoping to pad the GOP’s slim congressional majority, told Texas Republicans in July to redraw their maps.
A political cascade ensued. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, threatened to retaliate by creating more Democratic seats in his state. Democrats in Illinois, Virginia, and Maryland have discussed redrawing their congressional maps, as have GOP lawmakers in Nebraska, Kansas, and Florida.
But in Florida, fissures have begun to appear between Republicans on redistricting. Although DeSantis, Perez, and Senate President Ben Albritton all agree on mid-decade redistricting (DeSantis believes a SCOTUS ruling in his favor would necessitate a change in South Florida districts primarily made up of Black and Hispanic voters), they don’t all agree on the timing.
DeSantis, for his part, has emphasized the need to wait until the SCOTUS ruling to redistrict. Albritton also would like to wait.
Perez wouldn’t.
In September, he created a House redistricting committee to “explore” the process and potentially expedite the procedure in the Legislature. The Senate lacks a similar committee.
“We’re not going to wait until the spring, we’re going to move forward now,” Perez told POLITICO in December, adding that it would be “irresponsible” to wait.
This isn’t the first instance of disagreement between Perez, representing Miami, and DeSantis. The entirety of the 2025 session, a marathon 45 days longer than the 60 days initially scheduled, was marked by discord between the GOP supermajority Legislature and the executive branch.
This was largely spearheaded by Perez, who repeatedly urged his members to assert their independence from the governor. This struck a vastly different chord from DeSantis’ previous years in office, when he’d enjoyed an iron grip over a compliant Legislature as he geared up for a presidential run.
–Liv Caputo, Florida Phoenix
What Else Is New says
Of course, the far right wing of SCOTUS will approve any GOP redistricting. Ron Racist, Fraudulent DeSantis plans to make it more difficult for African American voters. Shame on the Florida GOP.
Laurel says
They need to cheat. They don’t give a damn what we the people want. They don’t represent us.
Another thing: DeSantis wants to eliminate the property tax. Pay attention! His resolve is to increase sales tax to 9%. So that doesn’t sound too bad, right? Keep in mind that the State of Florida sales tax is 6%. So, if you’re in a city and or county that charges 7% or 7.5%, you’ll be paying 10 % – 10.5%. You will still get an annual assessment bill for non ad valorem assessments, and you will get additional fees. You will still pay the school tax, as it will be exempt. How long do you figure those assessments, fees and sales tax will remain at the new rates? Also, when you sell your house, 5% goes straight to the government.
The people with the largest taxes on their homes will benefit the most.
Just stay aware.
PaulT says
And when it comes to Ron/s ‘slight’ increase in sales tax to offset loss of property ta revenuex. Watch for the fine print. It wouldn’t be a stretch to expect that Ron will copy Alabama and start levying sales tax on groceries and not just ‘prepared food’ and candy.
RWBoggess says
And why doesn’t he put this issue before the state legislature during the regular session instead of costing more money for a special session? Because by having a special session the governor’s office and state legislature can bypass the usual meeting notices (and open meeting notice requirements), prevent a diversity of opinions and testimony before the state legislature, and sway the vote of the state legislature to meet the governor’s political agenda. Also, by having it after the regular session he reduces the time frame for legal challenges as it won’t permit legal challenges to be made in time before primaries.
PaulT says
Redistricting is already on the agenda for the regular 2026 Legislature’s session.
But Ron doesn’t like their maps. In 2022 he vetoed their proposals and drew his own contraversial map, then the Legislature and then the courts folded. I guess Ron needs his special session because the GOP controlled Legislature can’t be trusted to disenfranchise all the racial minorities who are likely to reject the pro Trump candidates in 2026 after a year of abuse from The Donald and his lackeys.
Al says
Corrine Brown had a district that ran from Jacksonville to Eatonville, that wasn’t germandering was it. Where is it written that there has to be minority districts. That thinking from the progressive left was pure BS. All we get are more people like Frost who spews his lack of intelligence every time he speaks.