Florida leaders are calling for unprecedented mid-decade redistricting.
Changing the congressional map usually happens just once a decade after the U.S. Census.
But, after Texas redid its map to send more Republicans to Congress at President Donald Trump’s urging, other states are now following suit in a political battle to tilt the balance of power ahead of the 2026 midterms.
But data released this week indicates most Floridians disagree with mid-decade changes.
That includes 45% of Republicans, 60% of independents and 62% of Democrats, according to a poll commissioned by the advocacy group Common Cause.
"Floridians do not want the Legislature to waste our taxpayer dollars and their time trying to make our voting maps even more gerrymandered than they already are," said Amy Keith, who leads the Florida chapter of the group, in a virtual press conference on Thursday. "Floridians want our Legislature to focus on making our state a more affordable place to live."
More than three-quarters of those surveyed said they would support independent citizen commissions to draw districts rather than state lawmakers.
And, according to the poll, a majority of voters — including Republican Trump voters — also support Congress banning maps favoring political parties.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has been loudly pushing for mid-decade congressional redistricting.
The Florida House has created a committee to explore it. House Speaker Daniel Perez named its members earlier in the week, with eight of the 11 being Republicans.
Market research firm Noble Predictive Insights conducted the poll. Nearly 500 registered state voters were surveyed from Aug. 26 to Sept. 2, with a margin of error of around 4.4%.
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This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
