SARASOTA, Fla. -- "Well you talk about throwing things into chaos to have all the districts re-drawn by August 15th,” stated Joe Gruters.
In a ruling handed down on Friday, Florida judge Terry Lewis orders that a new congressional map must be drawn by August 15th. Last month, Lewis ruled that the current U.S. house districts are illegal because they were drawn to favor the Republican Party. Legislative leaders had wanted to keep in place the states current districts until after the 2014 elections.
In an ABC7 report last month Manatee County supervisor of elections shared his feelings on redistricting.
"The problem with it is, if you change one of those seats, and they're going to have to, it would affect the entire state of Florida and would have to re-draw all the seats," stated Mike Bennet.
That re-drawing could affect the Florida primary election which is scheduled for August 26th. Senator Nancy Detert, who represents Florida’s district 28, had some harsh words to say about the ruling. Saying, quote:
"I don't see how we can re-draw two districts without affecting all of the other districts. This cascade would impact candidates who are already listed on the ballot for those seats and would prompt more lawsuits. We would have to re-draw the maps, take public input in those communities, and submit the maps to the courts. Absentee ballots have already been sent out and voters are voting. I would be very surprised if one local judge has the power to throw an entire election into chaos."
For one Manatee County resident, this issue is about losing minority representation.
"It’s an actual social issue to insure the diversity of the state, because it is extremely diverse, as represented in our processes," stated Rodney Jones.
Joe Gruters is the chairman of the Republican Party of Sarasota.
"I think the judge personally made a mistake and I think that his idea to have these re-drawn by August 15th is totally insane."
The impact that this ruling will have on the Suncoast has yet to be determined, however, one thing is for sure, the August 26th primary election is getting closer and closer.
