Bush signs off on redistricting, but lawsuits loom

Republicans in southwest Florida and others try to block the measure, which faces review by the U.S. Justice Department.

©Associated Press
March 28, 2002

TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Jeb Bush signed the bill reshaping Florida's congressional district boundaries Wednesday, but the plan faces court challenges.

Bush, whose support was expected, signed the measure (HB 1993) without a public ceremony. It still needs to be reviewed by the U.S. Justice Department.

Meanwhile, Republicans in southwest Florida plan to sue over the plan, even though it was drawn by fellow Republicans in the GOP-controlled Legislature.

Collier County Republicans say it ignores them by creating a district custom-drawn for a Miami lawmaker, Republican state Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart.

Collier County Republican Chairman Mike Carr said a seat designed for Diaz-Balart won't provide adequate representation for the South Florida Gulf Coast region and that it "dismembered" Collier County.

The new district was meant to be one that includes a large number of Hispanics, to ensure them representation. It includes more than 500,000 people in western Miami-Dade County, while only about 80,000 live in Collier County.

The rest of Collier County would still be in the district now represented by Republican Rep. Porter Goss of Sanibel.

Republican U.S. Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart also sued the Legislature Friday over the plan, even though it created the seat for his brother.

But his suit was filed before the Legislature completed its plan, when it was uncertain lawmakers would finish before adjourning. It seeks to have the districts drawn by a federal judge to speed up the process and give candidates more time to campaign.

The map also carves out a new Central Florida district designed for Republican House Speaker Tom Feeney of Oviedo, who plans to run for Congress.

The plan squeezes the 3rd District, which now runs from Jacksonville to Orlando, into a more compact area. It is now a black-majority seat held by U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown, D-Jacksonville.

The lawsuits are just two of the many expected to be filed over the once-a-decade redistricting process.

Two redistricting lawsuits have been filed in federal court in Miami, but they could be moved.

U.S. District Judge Patricia Seitz removed herself from one case Wednesday at Bush's request. Her husband is treasurer of Janet Reno's gubernatorial campaign. A separate request by Bush's lawyers would move the lawsuit to federal court in Tallahassee.

Three black members of Congress from Florida -- Alcee Hastings, Carrie Meek and Brown -- filed the other suit. Bush wants that case to be heard by either a federal or state judge in Tallahassee.

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