OCT 8 Hot Topics: Redistricting
Staff | Published on 9/23/2025
The League of Women Voters of Florida President Jessica Lowe-Minor will be a panelist for the Orange County League’s Oct. 8 Hot Topics lunch and panel discussion, “Battle Lines: Redistricting & What’s at Stake for FL Voters.”
Doors open at 10:30 a.m. at the Winter Park Events Center for a buffet lunch. The discussion starts at 11:45 a.m. at 1050 W. Morse Blvd. in Winter Park and ends at 1 p.m. Tickets are $30 for League members, $37 non-members. Register at www.LWVOC.org/HotTopics
The moderator is the Rev. Kathy Schmitz, president of the League of Women Voters of Orange County. Panelists include Jessica Lowe-Minor, the youngest woman elected to lead the state League, former Florida Supreme Court Justice James Perry, who ruled in the Fair Districts case, and Fritz Wermuth, an attorney with King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, who also represented plaintiffs in the case.
Florida has waded into the mid-decade redistricting fight with the backing of Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida House speaker, but it remains uncertain how the battle will play out as it did in other states. Usually states redistrict once a decade after the Census. President Donald Trump has suggested some states should redraw district lines ahead of the 2026 elections so that Republicans can retain control of Congress. Texas and Missouri already have approved redistricting maps. Other states may follow.
Twenty of Florida’s congressional seats are held by Republicans, and eight are held by Democrats. However, backers of the redistricting efforts also face a unique legal challenge because of Fair Districts standards. Florida voters approved the Fair Districts constitutional amendment against partisan gerrymandering in 2010.
The panel is expected to focus on the history of the Fair Districts amendment, the resulting court cases and how the redistricting fight may unfold in the coming months. Among the issues to be discussed at Hot Topics:
--How is the state Legislature expected to deal with redistricting? Although House Speaker Daniel Perez has appointed a select committee to explore the idea, Senate President Ben Albritton has been silent so far.
-- What does mid-decade redistricting mean for the state’s voters?
--If the Legislature acts, which areas of the state are most likely to be affected if one or two congressional districts are flipped from Democratic to Republican control?
The panel discussion will be streamed live on the League’s Facebook page Facebook and an edited version will be available later on the League’s YouTube channel, League of Women Voters Orange County - YouTube.
Visionary sponsors: Phil and Jennifer Anderson. Silver sponsors: Lyn and David Berelsman and Voting Voices —Michele Levy, Charley Williams, Caroline Emmons-Schramm and Laurie and Richard Wack. A new Silver sponsor group, The Kindred Three: Lee Rambeau Kemp, Sue Foreman and Joan Erwin. Bronze sponsors: Alex and the Hon. Cynthia Mackinnon.