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Florida lawmakers pass voting map that could help Republicans flip 4 House seats

View original article → Apr 30, 2026, 9:01 PM

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Accessibility links Skip to main content Keyboard shortcuts for audio player Open Navigation Menu --> Newsletters NPR Shop Close Navigation Menu Home News Expand/collapse submenu for News National World Politics Business Health Science Climate Race Culture Expand/collapse submenu for Culture Books Movies Television Pop Culture Food Art & Design Performing Arts Life Kit Gaming Music Expand/collapse submenu for Music Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions Podcasts & Shows Expand/collapse submenu for Podcasts & Shows Daily Morning Edition Weekend Edition Saturday Weekend Edition Sunday All Things Considered Up First Here & Now NPR Politics Podcast Featured Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Planet Money Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Florida lawmakers pass voting map that could help Republicans flip 4 House seats Florida lawmakers passed a new voting map that could give Republicans an edge in flipping four House seats now held by Democrats. It aids President Trump's national redistricting push. Politics Florida lawmakers pass voting map that could help Republicans flip 4 House seats April 30, 20264:43 AM ET Heard on Morning Edition From By Douglas Soule Florida lawmakers pass voting map that could help Republicans flip 4 House seats Listen · 2:22 2:22 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5805092/nx-s1-9750771" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript Florida lawmakers passed a new voting map that could give Republicans an edge in flipping four House seats now held by Democrats. It aids President Trump's national redistricting push. Sponsor Message STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: Some other news now. Florida lawmakers approved a congressional map that could help Republicans gain four more House seats in the midterm elections. This is the latest state to rewrite the maps in the middle of the decade. Here's Douglas Soule from member station WUSF. DOUGLAS SOULE, BYLINE: It was only Monday when Republican governor Ron DeSantis rolled out the map he wanted lawmakers to pass during a special session. In the GOP-dominated legislature it moved quickly, with both chambers passing it Wednesday. Republican state Senator Don Gaetz was one of the sponsors of the map proposal. He backs DeSantis' rationale for it. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) DON GAETZ: We have an extraordinarily unique situation in Florida with this tremendous additional number of people who moved to our state and have been disproportionately placed in different parts of the state. SOULE: For months, DeSantis pointed to an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case out of Louisiana challenging protections for minority voters. That ruling indeed came out Wednesday, prompting DeSantis to post on X that it cleared the way for Florida to redistrict in a way he says is not about race. Here's Gaetz again. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) GAETZ: He doesn't want lines that define or divide us on the basis of race. SOULE: But Democrats dispute the impact of the Louisiana case. They say the new map undermines minority voting power and divides up Democratic votes, all to help President Trump and the GOP in the midterms. Trump has prompted other Republican-led states, starting with Texas, to redistrict. Democrats countered in California, and most recently, Virginia. Florida's move could put the GOP ahead again. Here's Democratic state Senator LaVon Bracy Davis during the Florida debate. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) LAVON BRACY DAVIS: Let's not pretend that this is happening in a vacuum. This is about power. This is about relinquishing our power and giving it to the president. SOULE: Democratic state representative Michele Rayner says the redistricting still violates a state ban on gerrymandering voters passed in 2010. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) MICHELE RAYNER: It is illegal. It is a partisan gerrymander. And for those of y'all who say you are in the party of law and order, you should have a problem with this. SOULE: Voting rights activists threaten court challenges and Democrats have pointed to recent wins in special elections, saying Republicans might lose in their new districts come November. For NPR News, I'm Douglas Soule in Tallahassee, Florida. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

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