It' allows this year’s races to proceed under the existing lines. Judge approves new Fla. House map

A Florida judge ruled Friday that the state’s reconfigured congressional map will take effect for the 2016 elections, a victory for Republicans that allows this year’s races to proceed under the existing lines.

Leon County Circuit Judge Terry Lewis, who ruled in July that the state’s map was unconstitutional and ordered the Legislature to fix two districts in particular, ruled Friday that Republicans’ tweaks to the map were enough to comply with Florida’s Fair Districts amendment, which prohibits the Legislature from taking politics into consideration when drawing the state’s congressional districts. Lewis also said that the 2014 elections would carry on under the map he previously threw out — with the primary just days away and elections officials saying they couldn’t hold new elections until next year.


“My ‘duty’ is not to select the best plan but, rather, to decide whether the one adopted by the Legislature is valid,” he said in his decision.

Lewis’ decision comes after a hearing earlier this week during which Democratic-aligned groups, who are challenging the map, argued that the Republicans had not done enough to make the districts fair. Following the ruling, David King, an attorney for the coalition, said in a statement that the groups intend to appeal.

( Also on POLITICO: Fla. GOP fix kicks map back to court)

“We are disappointed and plan to ask the appellate courts to review Judge Lewis’ ruling,” he said.

Democrats have been hoping that the legal battle could boost their chances of picking up additional seats. Republicans currently hold a 17-10 advantage in the House delegation, despite an overall voter-registration edge in the state for Democrats.

Specifically, the plaintiffs argued that the 5th District, which is represented by Democrat Corrine Brown and is one of the districts Lewis struck down in a previous ruling, remains unconstitutional because it stretches all the way from Jacksonville down to Orlando in an effort to pack in African-American voters into one seat. Democrats argued that a different configuration would make it more compact and make District 10, which is represented by Republican Daniel Webster, more competitive.

In his decision, Lewis said the Legislature went far enough in their tweaks to the lines. “While district 5 in the remedial map is not a model of compactness, it is much improved,” he wrote in his decision.

( Also on POLITICO: Fla. redistricting suit sparks clash)

Meanwhile, Republican leaders have said that North-South configuration of Brown’s district is an effort to comply with the Voting Rights Act, a federal requirement that calls for congressional representatives to reflect the country’s racial and ethnic diversity.

“We conformed to every word in the court’s order,” said George Meros, an attorney representing the Republicans, during the hearing. “CD5 was generated not for Republicans or Democrats but to remedy the rampant racial discrimination in Northern Florida.”

Lewis’ ruling provides clarity to voters and campaigns — especially in Central Florida, who have been thrown into chaos ever since the judge’s July ruling.

Based on Friday’s decision, the 2014 election schedule will carry on as planned under the map that Lewis previously threw out. “Accordingly, based on the evidentiary record before me, I conclude that a special election is not an appropriate remedy under the circumstances. The 2014 elections will have to be held under the map as enacted in 2012,” Lewis wrote.

The judge’s decision to toss out the congressional map came after a 12-day trial earlier this year. Top state legislators and Republican consultants testified during the hearings.