DeSantis purposely dismantled a Black congressional district, attorney says as trial over map begins

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON
Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Lawyers representing Black voters told a three-judge federal panel that Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis violated the U.S. Constitution by deliberately dismantling a congressional district that favored Black candidates. A trial over the congressional districts the governor pushed through the Legislature last year began Tuesday in federal court. Groups including the NAACP say the DeSantis-backed map violates the U.S. Constitution because it diminishes north Florida Black voters’ ability to elect candidates of their choice. The map drawn by a DeSantis aide dismantled the district held by Black Democratic Rep. Al Lawson and distributed it among conservative districts easily won by white Republicans.