Guest AuthorFloridians voted yesterday. But it hardly mattered. Worse than gerrymandered, Florida’s voting districts have now been “terrymandered,” thanks to Circuit Court Judge Terry Lewis. The whole sordid affair is enough to make a manic-depressive out of all Floridians who care about clean government.
For a euphoric nanosecond, it looked like Florida was about to enjoy a rebirth of freedom. In 2010, by an overwhelming majority, voters passed two amendments to the state Constitution (the “Fair Districts Amendments”) to end the gerrymandering of districts.
In July, Lewis presided over a case that alleged that the congressional districts the state Legislature drew in 2012 violated “Fair Districts.” He called it a matter “of the highest importance, going, as it does, to the very foundation of our representative democracy.”
Ultimately, Lewis ruled that the process that was used and the maps that were drawn were “tainted,” had been created “with improper partisan intent,” and were unconstitutional. In sweeping, scathing language, he said it “made a mockery of the Legislature’s proclaimed transparent and open process of redistricting.”
A “group of Republican political consultants or operatives,” he elaborated, “did in fact conspire to manipulate and influence the redistricting process. They accomplished this by organizing and writing scripts for groups of people to attend the public hearings to advocate for adoption of certain components or characteristics in the maps, and by submitting maps and partial maps through the public process, all with the intention of obtaining enacted maps for the State House and Senate and for Congress that would favor the Republican Party.”
Lewis also intimated that there was evidence of a possible cover-up: “The Legislators and the political operatives systematically deleted almost all of their e-mails and other documentation relating to redistricting. There was no legal duty on the part of the Legislature to preserve these records, but you have to wonder why they didn’t. Litigation over their plans was ‘a moral certainty,’ as their lawyers put it earlier in this case, and intent would be a key issue in any challenge.”
In conclusion, Lewis found “the Congressional Redistricting plan adopted by the Legislature to be constitutionally invalid.” He ruled that Districts 5 and 10 “will need to be withdrawn, as will any other districts affected thereby” and gave the Legislature until Aug. 15 to do so.
He even said he might call for a special election for districts that had been gerrymandered. Deidre Macnab, president of the League of Women Voters of Florida, one of the parties to the lawsuit, has been quoted saying, “This is a champagne moment for Florida voters, who have waited too long for fairly drawn congressional districts.”
But, even as he dispatched the Legislature to come up with a new map, Lewis warned that it might turn out to be just for show: “To develop a new map and hold a special election for some congressional representatives would cost more money, would place additional burdens on our election officials and might confuse some voters.”
Swiftly, the Legislature went into special session and tweaked its original, gerrymandered map, ultimately to Lewis’ satisfaction. But then, he gave Florida voters a double dose of “terrymandering,” judicially sanctioned electoral garbage. He ruled that the original 2012 map that he concluded in July was unconstitutional could still be used this November, and the new one — which some would argue is also unconstitutional — didn’t have to take effect until 2016.
Praising Lewis, House Speaker Will Weatherford has been quoted saying, “I am especially relieved that our overseas military voters and those Floridians who cast their ballots early will have their votes counted this election.” Neither Judge Lewis nor Rep. Weatherford expressed any concern for the millions of voters who will physically go to the polls to vote for candidates in illegally drawn districts.
A kid who’s caught stealing a loaf of bread from a 7-Eleven gets thrown in jail. But, in this case, there is no penalty for trashing the state Constitution. In fact, with Lewis’ final verdict, the guilty are rewarded. In other words, expediency trumped electoral integrity. Republicans won because they “ran out the clock.”
Judge Lewis is guilty of making a travesty of his initial, uplifting decision and falsely raising Floridians’ hopes. It’s a clear case of “justice delayed is justice denied.”
Heraclitus was wrong. The only constant is not change, but hypocrisy. And that’s constitutionally depressing–or worse.
Stephen L. Goldstein is the author of “The Dictionary of American Political Bullshit” and “Atlas Drugged: Ayn Rand Be Damned.” He lives in Fort Lauderdale. Column courtesy of Context Florida.
